This is how I Know what Love is
by Lupa Dracolis
Summary: A year after Apocolypse's defeat, Gambit comes back to Bayville, with a certain girl on his mind. What does he have to say to her? T because it's Remy. RogueXRemy, St.JohnXWanda,
1. Prologue

**My first Romy. I do not own any of the characters physically, spiritually, or mentally, and the choices of the aforesaid characters do not in any way reflect my own...mostly. It is set one year after Apocalypse's entombment. This is just a rough guide to ages:-**

**Remy, Colossus, Warren – 23**

**Jean, Scott – 20**

**Rogue, Kurt, Kitty, Pietro, Lance, Blob, Todd, Wanda– 19**

**Amara, Tabitha, Bobby, Ray, Sam – 18**

**Roberto – 17**

**Jubilee, Rahne – 16**

**Jamie – 15**

_Thoughts, "foreign language", __**telepathy. **_**I will try my best with the accents, but they won't be great. **

**Prologue**

As a member of _la famille_ of one of the two largest guilds in New Orleans, Remy LeBeau had it good. Power and money pretty much came with the job, and he could easily have as many _femmes_ as he could possibly want; with his devilish charm and good looks, marred only by his loathed demonic eyes.

However, this Prince of Thieves felt something missing, and he knew exactly what it was. The Rogue. Ever since she'd helped him to save his unloving _batard_ of a foster father and had then saved _him_ from her team-mates, her bi-coloured hair and deep green eyes often found their way into his dreams. Who was he kidding? _Every_ dream that he had was about her, and he dreamt about six nights a week. As a result of this, he lost sleep, and had become surly towards members of his _famille_, even going as far as to back-chat the infamous _tante_ Mattie. To everyone's shock (and his foster brother Henri's obvious disappointment) he did not immediately get a tongue-lashing for disrespect, but rather a warm hug.

He squirmed uncomfortably for a minute, but then gave in to his _tante_. She shooed all of the others out of her kitchen and asked him,

"What be de problem, chil'?" To which Magneto's former Acolyte replied brokenly,

"I miss her, _tante_." He shifted out of his aunt's loving embrace and sat down, hanging his head.

"Miss _who_, chil'?" _Tante_ Mattie asked, worried about her adopted nephew who, though he was no relation to her, had always held a special place in her heart.

"Remy's Queen o' Hearts, his _belle ange_, his _magnifique_ Rogue."

"De girl who rescued Jean-Luc wit' you?"

"_Oiu_, _tante_ Mattie. I t'ink dat I love her." This threw her back. Remy LeBeau, confessing _love_ for _une fille_?

"Ah can't stop t'inkin' 'bou' her." He continued, Cajun accent becoming stronger as more emotion crept into his voice. "Nigh' o' day, she always dere, he' face, he' voice, he' spiri'. _Dieu_, she be _une brûlante_ Sout'ern _fille_. Am ah goin' crazy, _tante_?" He asked, lifting his red and black eyes to meet those looking sympathetically down at him.

"_Oui_, Remy. Crazy fo' love. Y' need t' go see her, o' else you gonna do somet'in' you'll regret."

"Bu' wha' if she don' feel de same way bou' me, _tante_?" He asked miserably. "She touched meh, y'know. Dat means she knows what ah've done, all de bad choices ah've made."

"Den you'l have ta see, won't ya, Rembrant." He started at the use of his full name. "Now, get. I don' wan' ya ta come back ta N'Awlins 'til y' at least tried ta get her ta love ya. An' ya wanna know de bes' way t' do dat?" Remy nodded eagerly.

"Be yo'sel'. Don' hide behin' dose cheesy pick-up lines. An' be hones'. Always tell her da trut', no matter how awful it might be, dat's always better dan tellin' lies."

"Yo' righ', _tant_." He said, a near-smile fluttering at the corners of his mouth. "An' by de way," He added as he left the kitchen, "it _was_ Remy who broke y' plate!" He then sprinted up the stairs to his room, to pack for his journey north to Bayvile. As he climbed through the window (old habits die hard) to go to his 'bike, he could hear his aunt's good-natured but angry shouts behind him.

**Yes it's short, but that's because it's a prologue. The official first chapter will (probably) be longer.**


	2. Love is Patient

**I do not own any of the characters physically, spiritually, or mentally, and the choices of the aforesaid characters do not in any way reflect my own...mostly. It is set one year after Apocalypse's entombment. **

_Thoughts, "foreign language", __**telepathy. **_**I will try my best with the accents, but they won't be great. **

**Love is patient .**

Remy ground his teeth together as he waited for the tank of his motorbike to fill with gas. Every moment he spent here was one that he couldn't spend speeding north, on his way to rejoin with his heart. He glanced at his watch, to see to his astonishment that the last 30 minutes or so were actually only about five. _Mus' be somet'in' wrong wit' it_. He thought to himself, as the machine beeped, and his 'bike's tank finally filled up. He put the hose nozzle back on its hook, and walked into the shop, readjusting his glasses. A year ago, he would have just driven off without paying, but he had learnt that it was better to pay for some things. If he stole petrol, the next time he bought it the price would be higher. Also, he hadn't eaten since the morning, and he was hungry. As he stepped through the doors a wave of cool air hit him. It was a hot spring, especially here in Tennessee. He grabbed a sandwich and a bottle of water from the refrigerator, and took them up to the counter to pay. There was a large man there already, who seemed to be having an argument with the check-out girl.

"I'm sorry, sir, but that is not enough money. You're still two dollars ninety-five cents short. I can take off the coke, that'll make it so you have enough money."

"But I'm thirsty!" The man exclaimed. "I need the coke!"

"Well, sir, the water costs less, you could have that instead." She recommended. The guy was starting to annoy Remy. He had a really irritating voice, scratchy and dry, and slightly too high to be normal for a man of his size.

"But I don't like water! I want my coke! I _can_ afford it; you're just making this up to get me to pay more. And then I bet you'll take that money and keep it for yourself. Probably stuff it down that tight shirt of yours, you bitch." Now that was going too far. This man was being unnecessarily rude to the poor girl. Sure, her top was a bit on the tight side, but so what? Most men would have taken that as a good thing rather than as something to insult the girl over. Remy knew that he would, had his mind not been filled with thoughts of Rogue. He laid a hand on the man's shoulder.

"Dere's no need t' insul' the _femme_ like dat, _homme._Jus' pay her de extra money an' den y' can be on y're way." However, this just made the man angry.

"Oh, and what do you know about it, you slimy southern scum. I bet you're just being nice to her so that she'll give you her number or something." And now Remy was angry.

"So, you t'ink dat de only reason fo' helpin' _une femme_ ou' is t' get he' _number_? Dat's disgustin'. I was helpin' her b'cause y' were bein' such a _batard_. B'sides, I wanna pay fo' my stuff, so I can get goin'. How 'bout you?"

"I like New York in June!" (1) A familiar Australian accent announced from the door to the shop. "Remy-kins!" It continued, as Remy groaned inwardly. "Ol' Johnny here hasn't seen ya in months! Oy thought ya were giving me the slip!"

"Well, I wasn't, St. John. Now do y' mind? I'm trying t' get this _homme_ 'ere t' pay 'is money."

"But Remy darling, we've just re-met! And look!" He pointed dramatically to the sky. "No petunias!" (2)

"_Oui_, de lack o' petunias is refreshin', bu' righ' now I'm planning on payin' and den leavin'. _Je suis désolé_, _mais_ I do no' plan t' go runnin' aroun' wit' y' again. Dat time wit' helmet-head was bad enough, Remy has no wish fo' a repeat occurrence o' t' 'fishpaste' inciden'. (3) This sent the pyromaniac into fits of laughter, from which the word 'fishpaste' was occasionally audible.

Remy turned back to the man at the counter, only to find that he had leant over the counter and grabbed the girl by her shirt collar, trying to do up the buttons that were there only for decoration, and so therefore had no matching holes in the other side of the shirt. Remy took his bo staff out of one of his pockets and elongated it. Quickly slipping it between the couple at the desk and under the man's arms, he heaved backwards, pulling the man off balance. He let go of the girl, who ran through a door into the back-room, leaving Remy to deal with the large and angry man, and the still giggling Pyro. The man got to his feet and walked towards the thief in a menacing way.

"You're in with them, aren't you?" He demanded of the puzzled Remy. "The mutants! You're in league with the mutants!"

"You're not far off, mate!" Pyro exclaimed happily from his new-found perch above the drinks refrigerator. "You see, ol' Gambit there and me, we _are_ mutants!" He began to laugh maniacally again, in severe danger of falling from his lofty perch.

"Now, y' don' wan' t' listen t' him." Remy quickly told the man, backing towards the exit. "I'm sure y' can tell dat e's not in 'is righ' mind. 'e was jus' talkin' nonsense back den. Ain't dat righ', Johnny?" He asked hopefully.

"Now come on, Remsy. Both you and oy know full well that we're both mutants. Oy've seen dose sparkly cards of yours. And what about your ey-mmph!" He was interrupted as Gambit pulled him off of the refrigerator and held his hand over the crazy Australian's mouth.

"What was he going to say?" Demanded the man. It quickly dawned on him. "Your eyes! That what he was going to say! Take off your sunglasses!"

"_Non_, why should I? Jus' so dat you can be satisfied? Y' wouldn't satisfy me an' give dat poor girl all de money you owed, why shoul' I give you de satisfaction o' seein' my eyes?"

"Why won't you take them off? Have you got something to hide?" John put in from the floor.

"_Non_, it's jus' they're incredibly _comfortable_. Soon ev'rybody will be wearin' dem." (4) He responded automatically.

"Enough of this!" The large man exclaimed, and snatched off Remy's sunglasses, revealing his red on black eyes. "Mutant!" The man exclaimed. He gave a cry of rage, and started coughing violently. _Guess he _was _thirsty! _Remy thought, before St. John interrupted again.

"Look, Remy! A lighter! He said excitedly, waving it about in the air.

"_Merde._" (5) John flicked it open, and the little flame quickly grew in size. It became a medium sized dragon, which flew up to the man, and hovered in front of him, fiery wings flapping.

"Please can I, Remy?" The Australian was hopping up and down. "I haven't chased anyone with a dragon for _ages_."

"Fine, bu' jus' 'til he leaves de shop. Den it's bye-bye, _monsieur_ Dragon. _D'accord_?"(6)

"Fine." John huffed. The dragon stretched its neck up and roared silently, with John doing the voice for it. The man screamed, and ran out of the shop, closely followed by the dragon.

"John!" Remy snapped at him, and the dragon dwindled away, returning to the little lighter flame, which disappeared too, as John snapped it shut.

"You're no fun." He grumbled to Remy.

"Good. Now mebbe I can pay fo' my gas." He said, and returned to the counter, placing the water and sandwich that he had chosen earlier on its top. He rang the little bell on the counter, summoning the girl from the back room. She squeaked and cowered in the doorway.

"It's alrigh', _mad'moiselle_. My _copin_ (7)'ere chased 'im away."

"M...m...mutant!" She stammered out, shaking.

"_Oui_, I am, bu' I promise I won' hurt y'. Al I wan' is t' pay f'r m' gas, water an' sandwich an' den be on m' way. The girl nervously approached the counter, and quickly swiped his food.

"De motorcycle, _aussi_." He told her. She glanced outside and added the number displayed on the machine outside to the total. He paid her, took the bottle and sandwich, and left the shop. On his way over, he drank half the water, and ate one of the two sandwiches. When he reached the 'bike he stowed the bottle and plastic sandwich box under the seat, putting on his helmet. As he drove to the exit, a police car entered the service station. It came around and pulled up next to him.

"_Merde_." He repeated.

"We don't want to detain you for long, son, but we got a call from here. Something about a fight in the shop, and a ginger Australian maniac. They also mentioned something about mutants. So, if you could just take your helmet off so we can check your hair colour, we'll be on our way. Remy obliged, tilting his helmet forward so that they could see his dark brown hair. As he did, St. John ran out of the shop. He stopped dead when he saw the police car, but something about Remy's partial removal of his helmet made him feel obliged to say something.

"Behold! King Arthur lives!"(8) The two policemen swung their heads around, and John took that opportunity to jump on the back of Remy's motorbike. Remy shot off, cursing as he went.

**(1) From a movie called '**_**The Fisher King**_**'. Recommended.**

'**I like New York in June, how about yoooooooo?**

**I like a busker's tune, how about yooooooo?'**

**(2) From '**_**The Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy**_**' by Douglas Adams. Recommended.**

**(3) As far as I know, there has been no fishpaste incident between the two. I just put it in for funnies.**

**(4) From **_**'The Princess Bride'**_**, either the book or the movie is recommended.**

**(5) Shit**

**(6) OK?**

**(7) Friend**

**(8) During a battle in one of the endless stream of King Arthur films, a man rides up with a head stuck on a pike. He shouts "behold! King Arthur is dead!" Then a nearby knight raises his visor and shouts "behold! King Arthur lives!"**

**It is of course possible that John didn't know this, and is just insane. In fact, it is very likely. Please review!**


	3. Love is Kind

**Love is kind**

* * *

Remy stopped the bike and stared in astonishment. He turned his head to look back along the empty road behind him. Then swung back to stare in front again.

"One fine morning in the middle of the night..." (1) John whispered from his seat in the bike's sidecar. Once they'd escaped the police, Remy had pulled over to let John swap seats, and put on the spare helmet. He was now holding a bag of Remy's possessions on his lap, and around his feet lay other items belonging to the thief. John himself claimed to have no possessions, apart from an ever constant lighter, the clothes on his back, and a toothpick. Remy was, at first, curious about the toothpick, but decided that his sanity was safer if he didn't know.

He turned to look behind himself again. While John's statement wasn't entirely accurate, it was pretty close. They were on a hill, looking down at Bayville. The time was about 11:30 am. Looking back, it was bright and sunny. Up ahead, the sky was covered in clouds.

"Let's turn back, mate. That's just too strange. Brrrr, freaky." St. John rubbed his arms to emphasise the point.

"_Non_. Y' can turn back if y' want t', John, bu' I'm carryin' on. Dis freaky weat'er ain't enough t' turn back Remy LeBeau!" Then he added, as an afterthought, "It's prob'ly dat weat'er witch o' Xavier's messin' aroun'."

"But don't forget, Dorothy, where there's a good witch, there's a bad one!" (2)

"_Oui_, bu' if some _p'tite fille_ in a blue an' white dress (3) can beat 'er, so can I."

"That's the spirit!" John cheered as they headed off into the shadow of the ominous cloud. "But just so we get this straight, I'm not Toto!" (4)

As the two former Acolytes headed into town, Remy considered his options. He needed a place to stay, and a way to get money, hopefully without resorting to thievery. Wallets didn't count in that ban, though, he quickly decided. There was a double thrill in taking those. The initial excitement – will I get caught? And then the lottery of the contents of the aforesaid wallet. A lot or a little? Just old bills and a couple of coins, or a big cash-in? He could get a job, and rent a place to stay, with minimal chance of meeting Rogue, which was what this trip was actually for, or he could go to the mansion, cap in hand, and ask to join them. Cap in hand was not the way Remy liked to imagine himself, but if it brought him closer to Rogue... No question. He'd do it. He only hoped that Wolverine didn't kill him before he made his request to the professor.

Almost as soon as he decided this, he felt a poke in the leg. St. John, damn him. What was he going to do with the psychopath? He entertained a wild fantasy of the professor curing his insanity for a second, before brushing it aside. The bucket head had tried to get Mastermind to do the job, but the little old man refused to go anywhere near John's brain.

"What d' y' want, John?" He asked, not taking his helmet off. His friend Thierry had wired a comm.-link into them, so that he could talk to his passenger while they were driving. John jumped, and then grinned.

"A pit stop please, mate. My bladder's full to bursting!"

"Bu' we're nearly dere!" The impatient Cajun replied angrily.

"Please, Remy._ Pleeeeeeeeease!_"

"Fine." Remy turned a left instead of driving straight through the town. They stopped outside a small café, which had the added advantage of being next to a shop which sold sunglasses. As soon as the 'bike stopped, John jumped out and raced into the café, not bothering to take his helmet off on the way. Remy kept his helmet on as he headed into the shop next door, but for different reasons. His eyes were freaky, he knew it well, and he didn't want to startle anyone.

The shopkeeper, an old lady, looked up in surprise to see a biker come in to her shop, still wearing his helmet. He walked over to the sunglasses, chose a pair, and took them over to the desk.

"That will be ten dollars, sir." She said tremulously. He took out a few notes and laid them on the desk. Closing his eyes, he pulled the helmet off, and then put the glasses on over his closed eyes. Opening them, he smiled at the confused lady.

"_Merci_. My eyes, dey are ver' sensitive to ligh'." He explained. She glanced out at the thickly overcast sky. He bowed slightly and left the shop. The old lady looked down at the money, and saw that he had paid her three times too much. She smiled, and put the money away in her till.

* * *

Next door in the coffee shop, things were not going quite so smoothly.

"All oy want is to use your lav. Oy have no use whatsoever for coffee right now. My bladder's already full!"

"Yes, sir, but I'm afraid that you can't use the toilet here unless you by something." The teenage boy behind the desk explained patiently.

"But oy don't want a drink!" He exclaimed again. Just as the boy was about to repeat the lesson drummed into him – 'people can't use the loo unless they're a paying customer', a new, female voice interrupted.

"Let him have my toilet turn, Lewis." The boy nodded his agreement, and the Australian pyromaniac turned around to face his benefactor.

"Thank you, Sheila." He was saying, before he caught sight of who it was. "The Wicked Witch!" He yelped, and ran to the little boy's room.

"'Scuse me, _homme_. He addressed the teenager. "D' y' know where I migh' fin' a crazy, ginger-haired Australian?" The boy nodded, and pointed to a door saying 'gents'.

"He's in there, hiding from one of our customers." Remy sighed. Of course.

"Could y' tell me which one?" The boy pointed again, this time at a girl sitting at a coffee table, mug in hand. She had short black hair, which had been dyed red at the sides. She was wearing a long red coat, a short red top and tight black trousers, with red stripes down either side. Her ear-rings were shaped like ankhs, as was the pendant of her necklace. Wanda Maximoff, probably the most powerful mutant alive. Remy walked over.

"_Bonjour_, Wanda." She looked up from her cup of coffee, snorted, and looked back down again. As she didn't say anything negative, he sat down opposite her. "Any idea why m' _copain_ is hidin' from y' in de little boy's room?" He asked her.

"No, sorry, Remy. Lewis wasn't letting him use their toilet as he hadn't paid for a drink, so I said he could have my turn in the toilet. He turned round to thank me, said something about a wicked witch and ran in."

"_Merde_. D' y' t'ink I'll be allowed t' go in an' fetch him?"

"Probably." Remy thanked her and left. Entering the gents, he saw Pyro immediately. The Australian was curled up in the foetal position, murmuring softly to himself. As Remy got closer, he made out the words.

"The wind began to switch

The house, to pitch

And suddenly the hinges started to unhitch

Just then the Witch

To satisfy an itch

Went flying on her broomstick, thumbing for a hitch!" (5)

"Hey now, John. I t'ought Remy was gin' t' be Dorot'y." St. John looked up from his position on the floor.

"Has the wicked witch gone?"

"_Non_, bu' we need t' get goin'. Anyway, she ain't wicked. She let y' go t' de _toilette_, remeb'r ?" John uncurled and sat up. With some help from Remy, he stood. They walked out of the gents, talking.

"Dere are ways of tellin' whet'er she is a witch."  
"Are there? Oh well, tell me."  
_"_Tell me. What d' y' do wit' witches?" Remy braced himself, but St. John was having too much fun to spoil it.  
_"_Burn them!"  
_"_And what d' y' burn, apar' fr'm witches?"  
_"_More witches!"  
_"_ Wood." Interjected Wanda as they passed her.  
_"_Good. Now, why d' witches burn?"  
_"_...because they're made of... wood."  
_"_Good. So how d' y' tell whet'er she's made o' wood?"  
_"_Build a bridge out of her." They had got out of the coffee shop, and onto the 'bike.  
"But can y' no' also build bridges out o' stone?"  
" Oh yeah."  
" Does wood sink in water?"  
_"_ No, no, it floats!... It floats! Throw her into the pond!"  
_"_ _Non, non_. What else floats in water?"  
_"_ Bread."  
" Apples."  
_"_ Very small rocks."  
_"_ Cider."  
" Gravy."  
_"_ Cherries."  
_"_ Mud."  
" Churches."  
"Lead! Lead!" John did each of the peasants' voices differently.  
"A Duck." He gave king Arthur a regal voice.  
"...'Xac'ly. So, logically..."  
_"_ If she weighs the same as a duck... she's made of wood."  
" And derefore..."  
"...A witch!" (6)

* * *

**(1) One fine morning in the middle of the night,/Two blind robbers decided to fight./Back to back they faced each other/Drew their swords and shot one another. I don't know who wrote this poem, but whoever it was wasn't me.**

**(2) A reference to Frank L. Baum's **_**The Wizard of Oz**_**.**

**(3) In the film of **_**The Wizard of Oz**_**, Dorothy wore a blue dress with a white blouse.**

**(4) Dorothy's dog**

**(5) A song from the Wizard of Oz, sung by Dorothy**

**(6) From **_**Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail**_**. Extremely recommended.**


	4. Love is not Jealous

**Love is not jealous**

* * *

Upon reaching the Institute gates, Remy stopped his 'bike. He slowly took off his helmet, replacing it with the sunglasses in his pocket, and stepped off the 'bike, placing his helmet securely on the seat. He knew he was stalling, but he couldn't help it. The moment that he had driven for 31 hours for was nearly here. He walked slowly over to the buzzer, finger hesitating over the button.

"Get on with it, mate!" His Australian friend urged from the sidecar. He pressed the button. After a moment's pause, a tinny voice came out of the speaker.

"_Welcome to Xavier's Haunted Mansion, how may we haunt you?"_ Followed by a loud crash, and then a yell. "_Sorry about that._" A different voice continued. "_This is Professor Xavier's School for Gifted Mutants, how may we help you?"_

"Ah, I would like t' join y', as would m' friend 'ere."

"_Cool! New people! Um, just one second, someone will be down to meet you. SAM!!"_

A noise like shattering glass was heard over the intercom. "_Sorry, it's a bit of a chaos around here._" The voice apologised.

"Dat's OK. De place I come from is a bit like dat too." St. John came over.

"Remy, can I push the button?"

"_Non_."

"Please!"

"_Non_!"

"Plee-ee-eease!"

"John, buttons are no' toys!" (1)

"Fine!" He stomped back to the 'bike. "Ooh, ooh, someone's coming!" He announced excitedly, jumping up and down.

"_Oui_, John, dat's what dey said would happen."

"They're _flying!_" He announced triumphantly. About a second later, he was head-butted in the stomach by the flying person. "Ooof!" He announced.

"Ah'm sorry 'bout that. Ah still need ta work on ma landin'." The blond haired boy apologised.

"No problem, mate. So long as you take me for a ride! That looked marvy!"

"Sure!" The boy agreed cheerfully. "Ma nahme's Sam Guthrie, code-name Cannonball. What are yours?" He asked, looking at them both.

"St. John Allerdyce, but most people call me John...or Pyro." He added, taking out the lighter he took from the petrol station. (2)

"Remy LeBeau, ot'erwise known as Gambit."

"Cool! Okay Amara, ya can open th' gates now!" He announced to the speaker on the wall. The gates swung open. They all piled onto Remy's 'bike and he drove up to the front door of the institute.

"Y' got anywhere I c'n pu' m' 'bike?" He asked Cannonball, who directed him round to the garage. He parked next to a very familiar large red motorbike, belonging to their former team-mate, Piotr Rasputin. Unfortunately, Pyro noticed it too.

"Petey's here? Where's Petey? Here, Petey, Petey, Petey..." He said as they walked back to the front door, as if he really was expecting Piotr to come out because his name was being called. They went inside, and Sam led them to the left of the large central staircase. When they reached a non-descript, wooden door, he knocked, and then opened it.

"Professor, here they are." He announced, and then left. The two former Acolytes walked in, to find themselves in a spacious study. There was a large window, bookshelves around the walls, and a big desk. In front of the desk were two seats, and behind it sat the professor, who smiled at them both, though Remy thought that he caught a hint of worry in the man's eyes when he looked at Pyro.

"Please, come and sit down." He told the two, who obeyed, brushing against each other slightly to get through the door. "Now, what can I do for you two gentlemen?" He asked them.

"We wan' t' join y'r inst'tute, _Professeur_." Remy replied, adding in his head, 'A_n' I was 'opin' dat mebbe y' could do somet'in' 'bou' John.'_

"Well, you are both very welcome here. Your team-mate, Piotr Rasputin is also here, but he is currently training with some of the younger students. Would you like me to show you around?" As he said this, he nodded his head slightly at Remy.

"Dat woul' be ver' nice, t'ank-y'." He took them around the lower floor of the mansion, including the rec room, dining room and kitchen, and then they took the elevator to the first floor, where most of the bedrooms were. After seeing a typical room, (Kurt and Lance's) they went back down in the elevator, to the basement levels, which included a visit to Cerebro, and they ended up watching the training session in the Danger Room. Remy had quickly memorised the lay-out of the mansion, as he had been trained to do by Jean-Luc, but Pyro looked completely bemused. That is, until the tentacles in the Danger Room below started spewing out fire at the unlucky X-men.

"John." Remy cautioned him, but he wasn't doing anything to them, just staring with shining eyes, a bit like a child at a fireworks display. Remy was watching disinterestedly, until he noticed a familiar white-streaked head. _Rogue_. He watched her in awe as she deftly manoeuvred between snapping blades, scorching fires and grasping tentacles. She did a palm spring over a jet of fire, twisting through the air.

One of her comrades, a dark skinned boy, with black hair, had been captured by two of the tentacles, which had wrapped themselves around his torso and legs. He shouted something to her, and she sprinted over. Pulling off her glove, she touched his cheek lightly, she absorbed his powers. She instantly changed, her entire body going pitch black, with orange bits around her, like Remy himself had charged her like he did his cards. She ripped the tentacles off of him, and draped his arm over her shoulder, half-supporting, half pulling him over to where the others stood at the finish line. As he watched this, Remy felt something stirring in his chest. He felt bitter towards the boy that got to be so close to Rogue, to be touched by her. Was he...jealous? Of some kid, who probably hadn't even left school yet? Ridiculous. He pushed the feeling aside, as the X-men who had been training now entered the room in which he, Pyro and the professor were in.

"That was good team-work overall," The professor started to tell them, before Cyclops interrupted.

"Professor, what are _they_ doing _here_?" He asked, pointing to Remy and St. John.

"They are joining the team, Scott. Is that a problem?"

"No, professor." He replied stiffly, but from his tone it was obvious that there was a problem. While the professor continued to address the team, Remy studied Rogue. She didn't look much different from how she did when they were last together, in the swamp outside New Orleans. Maybe a bit careworn, like she had gone through a lot in the past year. Maybe she had missed him? But no, that was too much to hope for. It didn't look like she had, rather that she had suffered something that she didn't want to experience. He frowned slightly, not wanting her to be upset. He turned his attention back to the professor when he heard him mention her name.

"Rogue, you were making good time until you stopped to assist Roberto."

"Ah couldn' just leave him, Professor!"

"No, I am aware of that. It was good of you to discard your time to help a team-mate out of trouble." He then turned to face the rest of them. "And that is something that you should all remember. Even if you are just in a Danger Room session, you are still a team, and should act more like one."

"But Professor, you said it was a race!" A boy with bleached blond hair protested. Remy recognised it as bucket head's speedy son, Quicksilver.

"Yes, Pietro, I did, but if you had listened closed you would have heard that it was against yourself, not each other. You had to beat the time that you did the same course in last time. Roberto, Ray, Tabitha and Rogue, you all failed in this. As a result, I am afraid you will have an extra Logan session tomorrow morning at six." Groans echoed from each of the named students.

"Go and get changed, and then please meet in the Rec. Room." The Professor said, also sending the message out to all the others on the mansion grounds. The tired X-men filed out, Rogue and Roberto last of all. As they went through the door, Roberto whispered something to Rogue, and put his arm over her shoulders. She immediately shoved it off and stalked away. '_Dat's _ma chere.' Gambit thought, and followed the professor out.

* * *

**(1) Quote from **_**the Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy**_** by Douglas Adams**

**(2) See chapter 1, Love is Patient.**


	5. Love does not Brag

**Aha! You all want Romy interaction? Be patient, it will happen!**

**Love does not brag**

* * *

He was sitting on the bed, head resting in cupped hands. This was a mistake, he knew it all along. Who cares what _tante_ Mattie says? He would never fit in here, and he knew it. He gathered all his belongings together, and threw them over the balcony to the ground below. He was about to follow them, when he heard a knock at his door. Glancing at his watch (the light was off, but with his eyes he could see the numbers clearly) he saw that it was about eleven at night. Who could it be? Opening the door, he found himself looking down at two very familiar white stripes of hair.

"Rogue? What 'r' y' doin' here? It's 'leven o'clock!"

"Sshhh." She whispered, and pushed him back into his room, softly closing the door behind herself. "Ah've missed ya, Swamp rat." She told him, still pressing hard on his chest, forcing him back across his room.

"Dat's good, _chere_. Remy missed y' too." He continued to walk backwards until they were out on the balcony.

"It's a beautiful night, ain't it, Swamp rat?" She asked him, walking steadily forward. He was pressed up against the balcony rail.

"_Oui_, _chere_, _la nuit_ is ver' _belle_, bu' y'r far more beaut'ful." She suddenly slapped him round the face.

"Don't ya gimme that shit!" She shouted at the confused Cajun. "Ah know ya don' lahke meh lahke thaht, just admit it, ya filthy Cajun!" And with that she picked him up, and threw him off of the balcony. He fell, and as he did so he thought what a long time he was falling for. He reached the ground and passed right through it, and continued falling, until a loud banging woke him. He started upright in his bed, realising that someone was knocking on the door.

"_Oui_, what d' y' wan'?"

"Time to get up, Gumbo. You've got a training session to run with me in an hour." He glanced at the clock on the small table by his bed, saw that it read 6:00am, and collapsed on the bed again. He was _not_ a morning person.

"_Merde_, what have I got mysel' into?" He had agreed last night to become an instructor at the institute, helping the students to master their powers. His first week, he'd just be assisting the other instructors. He rolled off his bed, and pulled the bag of clothes out from under it, quickly donning a plain black t-shirt and a pair of black trousers (1). Heading down to where he remembered the kitchen to be, he opened random cupboards until he found a plate and cup and bread, getting milk out from the fridge.

"Um, I, like, wouldn't use that. Kurt drinks it straight from the carton." Remy turned around, to see a short, dark-haired girl standing in the doorway, rubbing her eyes. She was holding a small laptop. (2)

"I do not!" The fuzzy blue German exclaimed, bamfing into the room with a smell of sulphur.

"Well you, like, totally used to!" The girl exclaimed. Last night, they'd all introduced themselves to both Remy and St. John. The girl was called Kitty, and she came from Chicago, and the boy was called Kurt, Remy remembered. He knew them better as Shadowcat and Nightcrawler, however, as they had often sparred, Acolytes vs. X-men. As the two argued, Kurt got out a plate, a bowl, a knife and a spoon, while Kitty took out more milk, bread and rolls. They then each disappeared in their own special way, Kurt by bamfing (3) and Kitty by simply walking through the wall between the kitchen and the dining room next door. After a while, Kitty stuck her head back through the wall, which made Remy jump. He wasn't used to disembodied heads.

"Do you, like, want to come through here? All the others will be coming downstairs soon. Kurt and I hole up in the dining room at breakfast on the weekdays, 'cause the doors are locked, so no-one can come in."

"_Merci_, _p'tite_, bu' Gambit's nearly done. He'll stay here fo' now."

"Like, suit yourself." She said, shrugged, and then pulled back into the dining room. A loud bang was heard overhead. Remy finished his bread and milk, and put the empty plate and bowl in the sink, having noticed the rota outside the kitchen door. You had to put your name down for each of the jobs – washing up, cooking lunch or dinner, or doing the laundry at least once every month, or else you got training with Logan every morning and evening for a week. He opened the door to the kitchen, about to leave, but was thrown backwards as a huge dog landed on him. He was about to get up again when he was bodily picked up and hugged, feet dangling in the air.

"My friend Remy, it is good to be seeing you!" The mystery hugger exclaimed in a thick Russian accent.

"It's good t' see y' too, Peter, bu' could y' pu' Remy down now, please? He's findin' i' hard t' breathe!" The Russian apologised, and set his friend down on the ground. Once he had done so, Remy looked around for the dog which previously knocked him over, but all he could see was a young girl, trying to find something in the cupboards. Finally, she went over to the wall and knocked on it, shouting out,

"Cornflakes and milk!" After a short wait, the two items were stuck through the wall. The girl took them, poured them into a bowl, and began to eat.

* * *

Remy surveyed the course that Logan had designed for the nine youngest students. (4) It was a giant maze, spanning the entire Danger Room. They all started at different points, and it was a race to the middle. There were, of course, traps for the unwary, and quite a few dead ends.

"Quit sitting around staring and get down here, Cajun." Logan growled at him. He hopped lightly down from his perch on the top of one of the walls of the maze.

"_Oui_, Logan?"

"Yer goin' to be one of the traps."

"Okay, Remy c'n do dat. Where d' y' want him?"

"Jes' find yer own place to skulk."

"Remy's gettin' de feelin' dat y' don' like him, Wolv'rene."

"Yeah, well, I don't. I don't trust you, Cajun. And I won't forget how you kidnapped Rogue. It won't happen again."

"Remy has no intention of kidnapping her!" He shouted angrily in French, and walked off into the maze.

The wolf crept around, sniffing the ground carefully. She knew she would never win the race, so she just latched onto Bobby's scent and followed it. All the traps he had encountered were iced over, and completely harmless. She ran around a corner, and hit her head. Looking up, she saw a large ice wall. Great, he'd blocked off the passage. Now what?

Bobby laughed to himself as he jogged along. He heard Rahne following him, and set up a little...problem for her to solve. He was still grinning when he spotted the glowing card lying on the floor.

"Shit!" He exclaimed, icing it over before it exploded.

"_Henh_. An' Remy t'ought he wasn' allowed t' use language like dat infront o' _les petite enfants_." (5)

"What are you doing? You're meant to be teaching us!" The Iceman exclaimed, backing up.

"_Oui_, Remy t'ought dat too, but 'pparently he's a trap. Y' migh' wan' t' watch ou'." He added, pointing at the iced over card on the floor. Abruptly, it exploded, sending ice shards a short distance in all directions. Bobby quickly iced over, covering himself in a protective layer. Once the shards stopped flying, he ran at the Cajun, hoping to catch him by surprise. Instead, he was grabbed by the arm, and the ice around him was charged.

"Y' migh' not wan' t' do dat." He added, as Bobby tried to shake him off. However, it was too late, and Gambit's hand left contact with the ice, making it explode almost instantly. Luckily, Bobby melted it fast enough to not get harmed, though as it was he was soaked through by the un-frozen ice. However, he had managed to get past Remy, and so ran on, before the thief could follow him.

"Good work kids. You all got to the centre, some faster than others..." Wolverine broke off, looking at the drenched Iceman and the sheepish Wolfsbane (6). "Now get changed and get to school." He concluded, jerking his thumb towards the door. The young mutants filed out. Once they had gone, Logan turned to glare at Remy.

"Next time, don't charge one of the students!" He growled, and stomped out, Remy following a little way behind.

_Well _dat_ wen' well._ He thought to himself.

* * *

**(1) I'm English, so I'll use English words for things. Sorry to all my American readers, but I don't feel entirely comfortable calling them 'pants'**

**(2) Yes, it's the return of Kitty's laptop-diary!**

**(3) I love that word!**

**(4) Check out the prologue to see the ages and stuff.**

**(5) The little children**

**(6) Sheepish wolf? Is that even possible?**


	6. Love is not Proud

**Love is not Proud**

* * *

"_Bonjour, Chere_."

"What do ya want, Remy?" She asked idly, before freezing and spinning around. He was standing casually on the balcony of her room (1).

"What are ya doin' here, Swamp Rat?" She asked angrily, jumping up off of her bed, where she had been sitting, reading a new book. She had finally found a bookshop where they served mutants, as the owner's son was one – he had neon green eyes that could see in the dark.

"Remy's jus' come t' talk t' y', _Chere_. He wants t' ask y' somet'in'."

"Fahne, what do ya wan' to know?" She replied, crossing her arms.

"Remy wants t' ask y' what y'r real name is." He replied, walking into her room. He wandered over to the desk, looking at the things on display- an iPod, a few books, both bought and from the library, and a various types of make-up. After a while, he looked up at her, wondering why she hadn't said anything. As soon as he did, he immediately dashed over. She was curled up on the floor, hands clenched into fists either side of her head.

"_Chere_? Rogue, what's wrong? What's de matter?" He asked anxiously, putting his hand on her back.

"...Hurts..." She said between clenched teeth.

"Where? Where does 't hurt?" He asked again.

"Ma...heid." She replied, in obvious pain. Remy scooped her up onto his lap and held her there. After a moment's hesitation, she clutched at his trench coat with her fists. She moaned softly as he soothed her, one gloved hand rubbing circles on her back, the other stroking her hair. Eventually her moans stopped, and she let go of his coat. Realising where she was, she self-consciously scooted backwards off of the thief's lap.

"Ah'm sahrry, Remy, Ah jus' get these real bahd heidaches sometahmes. Ah don't know why, but ya bein' there seemed ta help."

"Dat's 'cause Remy's so perfec', he make de pain go away." He boasted, puffing out his chest in exaggeration. Rogue laughed and punched him gently on the arm. At least, she meant to do it gently. There was a sickening _crack_, and Remy's arm bent at an odd angle. He gasped in pain, demonic eyes watering.

"Oh ma gahd, Remy! Ah'm so sahrry!" She exclaimed, hands flying to cover her mouth in shock.

"T'anks, _chere_." Remy gasped, "Bu' could y' please help dis Cajun t' _l'hopital_?" She nodded, and quickly got his uninjured arm and put it around her shoulders, half carrying him to the med-bay. When they got there, Dr. McCoy was just finishing up with Cannonball. The young blond-haired boy had head-butted a wall _again_, and was having a light shone in his eyes to check for concussion.

"There seems to be no damage this time, Sam, but next time, stop before the wall, OK?" The large blue mutant grinned, a sight that was not entirely reassuring, as he had a set of very large teeth.

"Now, what seems to be the problem here?" He asked, turning to Rouge and Gambit, as Cannonball hopped off of the bed and ran back up the corridor.

"Ah didn' mean ta, Ah swear! Ah jus' punched him on the ahrm, an' Ah think Ah broke it!" Rogue exclaimed, helping the Cajun onto the recently vacated hospital bed.

"Hmm, I see." Hank mused. "Tell me, does this hurt?" He asked Gambit, prodding his arm.

"_Oui_."

"And this?"

"_Oui_."

"How about this?"

"Dammit, m' whole arm hurts!" He shouted, wincing. Beast had not exactly been gentle with him.

"I see. Now, I am going to have to x-ray your arm. Please come this way." He turned and walked off into another room. Remy got to his feet and followed the doctor.

Rogue was bored. She was waiting for Remy and Dr. McCoy to come back with the results on Remy's arm. She shivered slightly. Not from the cold, but from fear. She knew why her light punch had broken the Cajun's arm. Carol. She cast an experimental thought into her own mind.

_Carol, are ya there?_

_Of course I am. Where else would I be? _Came the angry response from the blond girl, trapped inside Rogue's head.

_D'ya mahnd tellin' meh how Ah did that ta tha Swamp Rat? Ah know it was yah powers._

_Well done, genius. Like I'm going to tell you. You killed me!_

_Ah did naht! Ya threw yaself at meh. Ya committed suicide, with meh as yah weapon!_

_Details, details._ The psyche sighed, flipping her hair back.

_Sorry about this, Stripes._ Logan's psyche apologised, appearing in the front of her mind with Carol. _Blondie got away from me._ He picked the girl up, and put her over his shoulder, walking off, into the back of her mind. (2)

"Ahem." Dr. McCoy's cough brought her back to reality. "Rogue, are you alright?" He asked worriedly.

"Yeah, Ah was jus' talkin' ta Carol." She explained.

"I see. Now, Mr. Lebeau has sustained a broken arm. This means that he will be staying down here for two weeks, and he will have to keep his arm in a sling for another four. I need you to go and tell Wolverine, who will be expecting him as an assistant teacher."

"Fahne." Rogue said, and walked out.

"Logan?" Rogue called out. She had looked for him all over the mansion, and was now in the garage.

"Yeah?" His gruff voice came from beneath the X jeep.

"Remy's hurt, an' he can't help ya with tha trainin' sessions."

"Oh?" He said, coming out from under the jeep. "How did that happen?"

"Ah punched his ahrm an' broke it." Logan broke into a grin, rubbing his hands together to wipe off grease from the jeep's engine.

"You jus' made my day, Stripes." He said. Rogue scowled at him.

"Ah didn' mean ta! It was Carol; she got ta the front of ma mahnd! Ah didn' mean ta do it!" She started crying.

"Ah...Ah think Ah'm losin' control agahn, Logan. Ah got a headache befoah, all the psyches were shoutin' at meh. Remy helped meh ta push them away, bu' they'll come bahck. Ah'm scahred, Logan." She finished, crossing her arms over her chest, and clutching at her upper arms. Logan came quickly over and gave her a rough, fatherly hug.

"It's alright, Rogue. I'll get Chuck to" She interrupted him

"NO! Ah don' wahnt anyone ta know. Ya know how lahng it took foah tha others ta trus' meh aftah Ah los' control tha firs' tahme. Ah don' wahnt that ta happen agahn."

"It's alright, Stripes. No-one else needs to know, just Chuck. Is that OK?" She nodded, and they went out, to see the professor.

* * *

**(1) As Rogue is now 19, she no longer shares a room with Kitty.**

**(2) As it is Rogue's mind, and she was focused, she took away Carol's psyche's powers to help Logan.**

**Hey, people! If you review, and send me a word, I'll try to put it into the next chapter, or the one after, etc depending on how fast you send it to me. If I put your word in, I'll mention your name in the A/N. Try to make the word interesting, and don't make it anything rude!**


	7. Love is not Rude

**

* * *

**

But what, you are asking, was St. John up to, as his friend was being squished by a Russian, set as a trap by a Canadian, and having his arm broken by a Mississippian? Or maybe you're not asking that. Oh well, you're going to find out anyway!

* * *

**Love is not Rude**

St. John Allerdyce was woken by a loud banging. His response was to roll over and groan. He could hear a low male voice growl from outside his room.

"Time to get up, Gumbo. You've got a training session to run with me in an hour."

"Remy, it's for you." He mumbled before falling back asleep.

About three hours later, John was ready to get up. Or at least, his brain was. His body had other ideas. It refused to get out of bed, no matter what he tried. He even went so far as to imagine his bed full of ice, but to no avail. Finally, he heard a loud knocking on his door. He rolled out of bed with a thump, and trudged over to the door. He opened it a crack.

"Are you the keymaster?" He asked the fuzzy blue person standing outside his door.

"Not zat I know ov." The blue teenager replied. St John slammed the door shut again. As soon as it was shut, Nightcrawler knocked again. John opened the door.

"Are you the keymaster?" He asked again.

"_Ja_! Actually I'm a friend ov his, he asked me to meet him here. (1) You need to get up now if you vant breakfast." He added.

"Ha! Oy need no breakfast!" The pyromaniac exclaimed, throwing out his arm dramatically.

"_Und der Professor_ vants to zee you."

"Have you ever considered being the evil villain in an action movie? You've got the perfect accent!" Kurt chose to ignore this comment, shutting the door again, so that John could get dressed.

"Who are you anyway?" John called from behind the door.

"Vhat? _Nein_, my name is not important. You must come vis me, or you'll be late."

"Late for what?"

Vell, um, vhat's your name, Earthman?"

"Allerdyce, St. John Allerdyce."

"Vell, late as in ze late Allerdycesaintjohnallerdyce. It's a sort of threat. You see?"

"No." (2) The door opened again and John stepped out. He was wearing his Pyro costume, minus the flamethrower. Instead he was carrying a small red lighter.

St. John sat in one of the chairs in front of Xavier's desk. His lighter was on the desk by the professor, who had confiscated it to get John's attention. Currently, Xavier was trying to peel through the layers of movie and book quotes in John's brain, trying to get to the man underneath. His astral form walked steadily (3) through the streams of text and images, until he came to a large, wooden door. Opening it, he stepped though into the Australian outback at night. Looking around, he saw John sitting on a rock, watching a small boy and an old man attempting to pitch a tent. He turned to face the professor.

"Me and my Gramps." He said, waving towards the two figures. "We went camping once a month. Oy loved it- it kept me away from my mum and dad. They hated each other, and would fight constantly, whenever they were near each other." The scene changed, to show a small kitchen. A boy with bright orange hair sat at the table, writing on paper with a small pencil stub. He looked to be about eleven. A man came in and ruffled the boy's hair as he passed. The boy looked up at him and smiled, but the man had already left the room. The boy turned back to his writing, sighing softly.

"Oy found out that if Oy wrote, Oy could lose myself in what Oy was writing. That was when Oy was happiest." A woman with a short, stylish bob, in an obviously dyed red came into the room.

"You idiot!" She shouted at the door that the man had exited through. "You've messed his hair up, _again_!" The man came back into the room, tying a green tie around his neck.

"John doesn't _need_ tidy hair. He's a _boy_, they _never_ have tidy hair!"

"Well excuse me for caring that my son goes to school smartly. Oy never noticed _you_ caring about his appearance!" The arguing couple and small boy faded out, and instead there was a picture of the boy, about 13, lying on a sofa, watching a movie on the TV. His head was propped up on his hands, and his jaw was open. The scene changed again. The boy was in his mid teens, and was sitting outside a tent with his grandfather. There was a fire crackling in front of them. Their voices were faint, but gradually got louder.

"-Sorry John-boy, but your mother decided that we can't do this anymore. This is our last time camping. After this, Oy'm going to be put into a care home."

"What!?" The boy leapt to his feet, fists clenched by his sides. The fire behind him grew taller, spitting out sparks. "That's ridiculous! You don't need to go in a home; you can look after yourself just fine! This is the only escape Oy get from Him and Her, Oy can't give it up!" the fire split in two, the tops curling around.

"Oy know how much doing this means to you, John-boy, but Oy can't go against your mother, she's got legal custody over you."

"Oy don't CARE!" John shouted, and the fire assumed the shape of two huge fists, in the same position that his were in.

"John..." The old man said in wonder. "Look..." John turned around, and saw the fiery fists. He gasped, and then flexed his right hand. The fire fist on the right copied his movements. John smiled wickedly.

"Oy don't think Oy'll find it hard to persuade her to agree..." He grinned wider. The scene vanished, and a new one appeared almost before the old one left. There was a concrete courtyard, filled with men in orange jumpsuits. One had hair to match his clothes. He was about eighteen or nineteen, and was sitting on the ground by himself. He was giggling softly. He lurched to his feet, and sauntered over to one of the prison guards, who was standing guarding the door back into the prison.

"Excuse me sir." He said to the guard. "Do you smoke?"

"Yeah, why?" The guard asked suspiciously.

"No reason sir, no reason! I was just wondering if you had a lighter."

"Yeah, I do." He said, bringing it out of his pocket. It was large and green. John snatched it and ran. The guard chased after him, but it was too late. The orange-haired youth flicked the lighter open, and flame streamed out. It grew into two huge wings, attached to his back. He flexed them once, and leapt into the air.

"See ya, suckers!" He shouted as he flew over the wall and off into the outback surrounding the prison. The scene before John and the professor fast-forwarded, stopping about three days later with the teenage John sitting in a small cave, in the side of a mountain. (4) He was fiddling with a toothpick, and the green lighter lay on the ground next to him. He was still wearing the prison jumpsuit. A strange noise outside brought him to his feet, snatching up the lighter as he stood. There was an odd expression on his face. A familiar masked figure flew into the cave.

"Who are you?" John asked angrily, flicking open the lighter.

"My name is Magneto. I am a mutant, like yourself. I have an offer for you, if you are willing to listen." John nodded his head cautiously, and Magneto continued. "I believe that there will be a war soon, between humans and mutants. I am compiling a team of mutants, to be a force against the humans. I want you to join that team."

"What's in it for me?" The Australian asked suspiciously. "and what would Oy have to do?"

"What is in it for you is that you will have a place to stay, and food to eat. You will have a strong position when mutants come to power. What I would have you do...well, let us just say that I will give you free reign on your abilities with fire, when the situation demands it."

"So basically what you're saying, is that Oy'll have a decent place to kip, food, and Oy'll be able to play with my fire?"

"Essentially, yes."

"Alright, Oy'm in!" The scene faded again, and John and Professor Xavier were back where they started, in the Australian outback at night.

* * *

"And so John joined the Acolytes, and was astounded at what he found there. For the first time in his life, he discovered that there were people that he could actually get along with, who accepted his fascination with fire, and shared his appreciation of certain movies and books. He found friends. After a while, his friends left. One went to New Orleans, to regain his life as a thief. The other to Russia, to search for his sister Illyana. The sad Pyro went on a tour of America, and was briefly in several jobs, mainly as a journalist, but sometimes waiting tables, or anything else that put food on the table. He needed to keep moving on, you see, because in that prison in Australia, he'd discovered something. If he didn't burn something, every so often, it felt like there was a fire lit inside of him. The longer he put off setting something alight, the larger that inner fire grew. He had enough sense to realise that this fire was a bad thing, but when he burnt something, he was always exposed as a mutant, and so had to move on. People aren't that willing to give jobs to mutants, you see, though at least they didn't attack him. One day, John walked into a gas station, in search of a new lighter, and guess who he found there? None other than the friend who went to New Orleans, Remy LeBeau. Now, he could see that hs friend was in a spot of bother, and decided to help him out. However, Remy-boy was not nearly so happy to see John." John finished his dialogue, and turned to face the professor. "To cut a long story short, Remy's eyes, lighter, fire dragon, cops, escape together, freaky weather, arrived here, blue Ghostbusters fan, you."

The professor exited John's mind, and sat up straight in his wheelchair.

"So, do you think you can help me, mate?" John asked.

"With your...inner fire?" The professor asked, and St. John nodded.

"Yes, I believe that the X-men can help you, John." He reached out his hand, and John shook it.

* * *

**(1) From the Ghostbusters movie**

**(2) From the **_**Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy**_** by Douglas Adams**

**(3) Xavier's astral form can walk, but not his physical form. They are different.**

**(4) They have mountains in Australia, right?**

**(5) I made up John's past in this fanfic, but in the X-men movie it does hint at him having a troubled family**

**I am so disappointed in you all! I did not receive **_**any**_** reviews with a word to put in this chapter! Sure, I got the 'Great story' and 'loving it's and so on (which were really nice, by the way) but come on, use your imagination, people! **_**Please**_** try to send me a word to put in the next chapter. It can be anything, from cinnamon waffles to marshmallow elephants! (Not that it has to be food related...) **_**Please, people!**_


	8. Love is not Selfseeking

**Laceylou76 – here's some more Romy interaction for you!**

**I've been waiting for **_**ages**_** to write this chapter. Please let me know if it comes out OK!**

* * *

**Love is not Self-seeking**

"Gambit, you have a visitor." Beast told him, sticking his head into the room where the Cajun was lying propped up, bored out of his mind.

"_Qui-est la_?" (1) He asked, shifting his position on the uncomfortable hospital bed.

"Meh." Rogue said, walking in.

"_Bonjour, chere_." He said, sitting fully upright. He knocked his bandaged arm against the bed and cursed.

"Ah wanted ta apologise abaht ya ahrm." She explained.

"_Oui_? Remy was meanin' t' ask y' 'bout dat. Since when was his _chere_ so strong?" Rogue shrugged miserably, and sat down on the plastic bed next to him.

"Ah'd rather naht talk abaht it." She said. Remy thought for a minute, and then grinned.

"How 'bout we play a game, _chere_? Remy has a pack o' cards. If y' pick a card, an' it's black, den y' ask Remy a question. If y' pick one dat's red, Remy asks y' a question." Rogue thought for a minute, and then nodded.

"Fahne. But Ah get ta shuffle them before we start." Remy grinned, and handed the pack over. They were shuffled quickly, and then handed back to him. He fanned them out expertly in the hand not contained by a sling. Rogue picked a card, and turned it over. The three of clubs.

"Looks lahke Ah'm askin' the first question. Umm, what's ya full name?" Remy grimaced.

"Rembrandt Etienne LeBeau. An' I'd appreciate it if y' didn' tell no-one." Rogue grinned.

"Rembrandt?"

"_Oui, chere_. Rembrandt. Now pick de nex' card." She did. Four of diamonds.

"Remy's turn. What's _your_ real name, 'Rogue'?"

"Anne-Marie Darkholm."

"Dat's _une belle_ name, Anne-Marie. Nex' card?" This time she picked another red- the ace of hearts.

"How old are y'?"

"Nineteen." Ten of clubs.

"How old are ya?"

"_Vingt-trois_." (2)

"Ya old!" She announced teasingly. Remy puffed up indignantly.

"Only four years older dan y'!"

"That's still old!"

"'Tis not!"

"Is too!"

"Now y' jus' bein' childish."

"Least Ah'm naht old!" Remy scowled, and waved the cards at her. "Pick a card, _chere_!" It was the six of diamonds.

"What d' y' look fo' in _un home_?" Remy asked, and she snorted with laughter. She looked at him, and saw that he was serious.

"'What do Ah look for in a mahn?' Ah can't touch no-one, how can Ah even think of gettin' a mahn, when touchin' him would mean that Ah knocked him out?"

"Well den, first t'ing would be dat he don't care dat y' can't touch him." Remy said casually, but with a stirring of hope inside him, mixed with pity. If she acted this way to his question, then there could be no boyfriend on the scene. On the other hand, that meant that she hadn't gone out with _anyone_ since her powers showed themselves, Over a year ago. That was surely too long for anyone to have to be alone.

"Ah guess so." She replied thoughtfully. "An' he'd have ta be tall, with dark hair." Boys with blond hair reminded her too much of Cody, the Mississippian boy she'd put into a coma. "An' he'd have ta be a mutant." Kurt's girlfriend Amanda was very accepting of his blue furriness, but she didn't think that a guy without powers of his own would be able to accept hers. "An' he'd have ta be older that meh, 'cause girls mature faster than guys. An' funneh, able ta make meh laugh. It'd also be nahce if he was adopted too, lahke meh." Remy grinned to himself. With or without realising it, she'd just described him.

The next card was a club.

"What do ya look for in a girl?"

"_Chere_, it don't count if y' jus' repeat m' questions back t' m'."

"That's mah question, deal with it, Swamp Rat."

"Le' m' see," He stalled, trying to think of a way to describe her without being too obvious about it. "Remy likes _une fille_ wit' attitude, an' green eyes are always nice. He likes bot' ligh' an' dark coloured hair. _Le fille_ has t' be shorter dan him, o'course. An' if she's a Sout'erner, dat's always a plus." She smirked.

"Ya do realise ya jus' described meh, don't ya, Swamp Rat?"

"Really?" Remy asked in mock-astonishment. "An' here Remy was, t'inkin' he hid it so well." She laughed, and then shifted uncomfortably in the hard plastic chair.

"Why don' y' come sit up here, _chere_?"

"'Cause if Ah do, ya'll see it as meh acceptin' ya advances on meh."

"_Non_, Remy will take it as purely platonic bed-sharing."

"Fahne." She agreed, moving onto the bed, before the double meaning in the words 'bed-sharing' caught up with her. She scowled at him.

"Ya...ya Swamp Rat!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. As she did so, she somehow caught his sling and tugged at it, causing him to grunt in pain, and for tears to gather in the corners of his glowing demonic eyes.

"Oh Gahd, Ah'm so sahrry Remy!" She exclaimed, hands flying to her mouth.

"It's OK, _chere_, Remy knows y' didn' mean it."

"Ah'm so sahrry!" She exclaimed again, her hands going to rest on his shoulders. He put his hand gently on her waist. At that point, a head stuck itself through the door, making both Rogue and Remy jump. Rogue recovered first, she was more used to her friend's odd habits.

"Kitteh, ya seriously need ta stahp doin' that!" She said to the Valley girl.

"Sorry..." The girl trailed off, looking at the two on the bed together, Rogue's hands on Remy's shoulders, and his free hand on her waist. Rogue jerked backwards, and quickly got off the bed. Kitty walked all the way into the room, and revealed the fact that she was carrying a plate of biscuits.

"Mirage and I made these for you." She said to Remy, setting the plate down on his bed. Rogue grinned devilishly.

"Go ahn, Swamp Rat. Have one of Kitteh's cookies." He looked at her suspiciously, and then reached for a cookie. Taking one, he sniffed it, shrugged, and then bit into it. He removed it from his mouth, and inspected the unmarked surface of the biscuit. He bit it again, harder. Still no difference. Experimentally, he tapped it hard on the wall. A bit of tile flaked off.

"Um, I'll try again!" Kitty said, grabbing the plate, and walking quickly out of the room.

"Ya've jus' become Kitteh's new guinea pig. May Gahd have mercy ahn ya soul." (3)

* * *

**(1) Who is it?**

**(2) Twenty three**

**(3) What the guy reading out a condemned criminal's crimes used to say at the end. Basically, you're going to die, so good luck!**

**Lucida Lownes gave me 'Kitty getting wrong idea about something', and **

**Fostersb said to put in the word 'mirage'. You see? It's easy! **

**Apparently, I have had 87 visitors to this story, and 16 reviews. Come on, people, that's less than a fifth of you who've actually bothered to write something about this story. Now, please think to yourself- is a review really all that hard to write? No, of course not! And does the author of the story benefit from that review? Hell yeah! They inspire us, and make us think that people aren't just reading our stories to laugh at their patheticness. Now, I hope that isn't why you read this story. If it is, then fine. If it isn't, then **_**please**_** review and tell me!**


	9. Love is not easily Angered

**I've jumped a week, as I didn't feel like writing what happened to Remy while he was in bed all that time. If I get enough interest, I may write a short story covering that Remy and Rogue's interaction that week. If this interests you, review and tell me!**

* * *

**Love is not easily Angered**

A week later, Remy was getting slightly bored of sitting around in the med bay. Well no, that's a slight understatement. He was _extremely_ bored. The only positive things that he could think about it was that Rogue – or Anne-Marie – chose to spend at least two hours with him every day, though he couldn't be entirely sure that it wasn't out of guilt rather than anything else. The other positive sides were that he had gotten out of training with Wolverine for this long, and that he had formed a strong friendship with Kurt. The blue imp had bamfed down to visit him, to offer his sympathies regarding Kitty's ministrations. Kurt had 'helped' her to perfect her muffins, which were actually quite good – after the seventy-ninth time she had forced Kurt to try one.

There was currently a great commotion in the mansion above Remy's bed- even more than usual. He was considering getting up and going to have a look, when Kitty came in through the door, carrying the dreaded plate of cookies.

"_P'tite_, what's goin' on up dere?" He asked, indicating the ceiling.

"Oh, some new people have arrived. I mean, finally! We haven't had any new-comers since you and John came, and there was a _huge_ gap between then and when the others on your team came. Now, tell me what you think of these." She said, handing him the plate. But Remy was looking at her incredulously.

"Ot'ers? Y' mean more dan Petey? Don' tell me dat Toot'y's here!"

"Toothy? Oh, Sabretooth! No, Magneto, Pietro, Wanda and Piotr came."

"Y' mean Bucket-head is here?"

"You didn't know? Yeah, he's here. He's, like, the professor's oldest friend!"

"Old bein' de righ' word for it." Gambit muttered, taking a cookie from the plate, and biting into it. He froze, eyes wide. Carefully, he chewed the mouthful, and swallowed it.

"_P'tite_, dat actually tasted good!" He exclaimed.

"Really? Like, wow! Thanks!" Kitty grinned widely, grabbed the plate, and rushed out of the room, just as Rogue came in. Kitty phased through her friend, and then on through the door.

"What was that abaht?" Rogue asked Remy curiously, coming to sit on the bed beside him.

"_Le p'tite_ was jus' told dat her cookies were good." Remy explained to her. She snorted with laughter.

"Yeah, she did the sahme thing when Kurt OK'd her muffins. She ran straight ta Lance an' gave the rest of the batch ta him. Ah wonder who she'll take them ta now" Rogue suddenly face-palmed. "Ah completely forgot - Ah'm supposed ta be helpin' Ororo show the new students arahnd."

"And this is the med bay." The tall African lady told them. There were four prospective new students at the institute, Lorna, John, Sean and Shiro (1). So far, both Sean and Shiro had hit on Rogue. Sean once, after which she had threatened him with her touch, and Shiro repeatedly. Nothing seemed to throw off the Japanese mutant, in fact, her repetitive rebuffs and threats only served to make him more eager to win her over.

"Who's that?" Lorna asked, pointing to Gambit, who was shuffling his cards one handed, the other still in its sling. He was wearing the sunglasses that he bought before coming to the institute.

"The name's Gambit, _Verte_. (2)" Lorna fingered her mossy locks and giggled, while Rogue scowled.

"What's the matter, Howaido-hea (3)?"

"Ah tol' ya, don' call me that!" Rogue said angrily. She didn't like the way that Lorna was looking at her Remy.

_Wait a sec. Did Ah jus' think of him as 'mah Remy'? Something is wrahng here._

"If I can have your attention?" Storm asked politely. "This place is a very important part of the institute. It is where both X-men and students go if they are injured. As you can see, Remy has broken his arm. He was cared for here, as he would sadly not be welcome in a regular hospital."

"Why not?" John asked. He had been very quiet for most of the tour. "I mean, how could they tell if he was a mutant? He does not have any visible signs of mutation, unlike Lorna's hair." Lorna glared at him, but he didn't seem to notice.

"Gambit, would you mind taking off your glasses?" Storm asked him.

"Sure t'ing, _Temps Noire_. (4)" Storm ignored his use of the nick-name she had acquired while 'working' with his adopted father. He took them off, and smiled ruefully at the gasps from the new boys. Lorna, however, gushed.

"Oh wow, you're like me!" She said, going over to him. "I mean, neither of us looks normal. Me with the whole hair and everything, and you with those freaky eyes."

"His ahes aren't freaky. They're nahce." Rogue came to stand the other side of Gambit, who turned to look at her in disbelief.

"_Chere_, Remy's eyes are not nice. Dey is devil eyes."

"No they're naht. They're... they look jus' fahne." She nearly said that they were nice because they were _his_. What was she thinking?

_Remy's glad y' t'ink dat his eyes are nice, chere, bu' dey not really._ His psyche told her. _Dey de reason Remy can't go ou' in public wi'ou' sunglasses._

"Well ya shouldn't have ta." She accidentally answered him out loud.

"_Chere_? Shouldn' have t' what?" She mumbled

"Nevah mahnd." and walked quickly out of the room, narrowly avoiding Shiro's groping hand as she passed.

Up in Rogue's room, there was a shouting match going on, but only half of it was out loud.

"Leave meh alahne!"

_Can't. Won't. Don't know how. Hate you. Love y'. Focus, Rogue! They're trying to take control! _All the psyches – good and bad – were trying to get her attention. It was doing Rogue's head in. She collapsed on the bed, crying.

"Ah jus' want peace." She sobbed. Suddenly, she felt something warm envelop her, and the psyches receded into the back of her brain. She lay, curled up. Half on the bed, half held by the person hugging her.

"Y' got it, _chere_. Y' got it." She looked up, grateful for him being there. Grateful for something to distract her.

"What are ya doin' out o' the med bay?" She asked angrily, sitting up. "An' ya not wearin' ya sling neither!"

"_Oui_, Remy is all better now. He don' need his sling. _Regarde_. (5)" And he swung his arm around, bending it and stretching. "Now, what's de matter, _chere_?"

"Ya mean ya were fahne all week?"

"_Non_, Remy only healed today. An' he only knew recently, when he punched dat Japanese _batard_ dat tried t' touch y' up. Now, what's wrong, Anna-Marie?"

"Ya know how when Ah touch someone, Ah absorb some of their powers for a whahle?"

"_Oui_. An' dere mem'ries too."

"Yeah. Well, Ah also get ma very own mini-them livin' in ma head, called a psyche. Recently, they've been gettin' agitated."

"Bu' dey've stopped fo' now, _oui_?"

"Yeah, they seem ta stop whenever ya around." She admitted.

"So y' got a Remy in dere?" He asked curiously.

"Yeah. An' a Magneto, an' a Colossus, an' a Sabretooth," She grimaced. "an' mah very own Julien Bordreaux. The 'you' spends most of his tahme keepin' him frahm attackin' meh – lahke Logan does with Sabretooth."

"_Oui_? Rogue, Remy needs t' tell y' somet'in' _trés important_. De reason he came here. He – I" At that point he was interrupted by a loud thud in the corridor outside. He sighed "Remy had better go. He don't want Wolverine t' attack him fo' bein' in here. See y' tonigh'. Bye, Anna-Marie." He swiftly lifted her gloved hand and pressed it to his lips, then darted over to the balcony. Quickly climbing onto the roof, he disappeared from Rogue's sight. She walked over to her door and pulled it open, to find Kurt and Sean, the Irish mutant whose tour Rogue had run out on. Sean was being attacked by the blue German boy. Rogue ran over, and pulled him off.

"Kurt, what's the mattah with ya?"

"He called me a monkey, _schwester_."

* * *

**(1) None of these characters are mine, but anyone who knows who they are from just their first names (and reviews it to me) will get their name written in the A/N at the top of the next chapter.**

**(2) Green **

**(3) According to an online translator, this means white-hair.**

**(4) Black weather**

**(5) Look**

**Chellerbelle gave me the word monkey. Please review!**


	10. Love Keeps no Record of Wrongs

**Lucida Lownes guessed Polaris correctly (Lorna)**

**NitrogenFixation got all of the new peeps, apart from John. Bonus brownie points for adding detail about powers!**

**Okay, Lorna Dane, AKA Polaris, is Magneto's estranged daughter. She can sense and control magnetism, and manipulate magnetic metals. She can also manipulate the Earth's magnetic field to allow herself to fly, generate magnetic energy pulses, and create force fields. By concentrating, Polaris can perceive the world around her solely as patterns of magnetic and electrical energy. She can perceive the natural magnetic auras surrounding living beings as well.**

**Sean Cassidy, AKA Banshee, is an Irish mutant, who possesses a sonic scream, capable of harming enemies' auditory systems and causing physical vibrations. He is named after the banshee, a legendary ghost from Irish mythology, said to possess a powerful cry.**

**Shiro Yoshida, AKA Sunfire, is a temperamental and arrogant Japanese mutant who can generate superheated plasma and fly. **

**John Proudstar, AKA Thunderbird, is a mutant who possesses superhuman strength, speed, stamina, and durability. His senses are also enhanced, enabling him to become a highly adept tracker.**

**All of these are meant to be adults, but for the purpose of this story, Lorna, Sean and John are the same age as Jean and Scott, and Shiro is the same age as Jubilee and Rahne.**

* * *

**Love Keeps no Record of Wrongs**

"He did what?" She asked, angrily turning on the suddenly very nervous Irish mutant.

"Ah didnae mean it!" He protested weakly, backing away. Rogue stepped quickly up to him, and lifted him up, hand over his mouth, holding him against the wall. She pulled her glove off with her teeth, and held her free hand up near his face.

"The only reason Ah'm naht goin' ta touch ya, is 'cause Ah don' wahnt ya in ma head. No-one calls ma brother a monkeh, got it?" He nodded weakly. "Good." She let him down, and carefully put her glove back on; making sure that her sleeve was completely tucked in. And then she kicked him, in a rather painful place. He collapsed to the floor. A bit of Carol had gotten into the punch, but Rogue wasn't sorry. As if Kurt wasn't self-conscious enough about his appearance, this idiot had to go and make it worse.

"Kurt, ya not a monkeh, ya hear?" She asked him, and he nodded.

"_Ja, Ich kenn_. (1) No monkey could do zis." And he teleported off, reappearing with a camera. "I'm just takink a photo of zis." He explained, indicating the groaning Sean. Rogue smirked, and went back into her room.

* * *

St. John wandered around the mansion, hopelessly lost. He had decided to go exploring, but had forgotten which way he had come. There seemed to be nobody around. He had heard some shouting, but it seemed to have come from outside, and he was on the third floor. To try and catch someone's attention, he started singing, waving his hand to count out the tempo.

"So long, and thanks for all the fish / So sad that it should come to this / We tried to warn you all, but, oh, dear / You may not share out intellect / Which might explain your disrespect / For all the natural wonders that grow around you / So long, so long, and thanks for all the fish! The world's about to be destroyed / There's no point getting all annoyed / Lie back and let the planet dissolve around you / Despite those nets of tuna fleets / We thought that most of you were sweet / Especially tiny tots and your pregnant women / So long, so long, so long, so long, so long! So long, so long, so long, so long, so long! So long, so long, and thanks for all the fish!/ If I had just one last wish / I would like a tasty fish!/If we could just change one thing / We would all have learnt to sing!/Come one and all / Man and mammal / Side by side / In life's great gene pool!/ So long, so long, so long, so long, so long / So long, so long, so long, so long / So long, so long and thanks for all the fish!" (2) He had just finished when a door nearby slammed open. (3)

"What on earth do you think you're doing?" A voice asked him. The voice belonged to a certain red-haired witch that John had met earlier.

"Oy'm lost, so I was singing – like they do in scouts...not that I ever went to scouts. The bitch and the bastard wouldn't let me."

"The bitch and the bastard?"

"My parents."

"Whatever they did, it can't be as bad as mine."

"They fought, both using me as their weapon and shield, and put my Gramps in a home, and me in a loony-bin." The lights in the corridor flickered slightly.

"My mother died giving birth to me and my twin brother, and my father put me in a lunatic asylum. When Mystique freed me, he had my memory wiped." John frowned.

"So you're Bucket-head's daughter? And Oy thought my family was messed up."

"Bucket-head? That's a good name for him. So, you're lost?"

"Yup." Was she going to show him how to get somewhere?

"Have fun with that." And the door closed behind her. St. John Allerdyce had not been entirely honest when he told Professor Charles Xavier about his 'inner fire'. It was not only a fire. It was rage. But wasn't that what a fire was? Rage at the world around it, especially that which it could not burn. John had written something along those lines once, as a poem probably. It had burnt well, he recalled. But back to the matter in hand. She had shut the door on him, practically in his face. How _dare_ she? He was- but no, that was the rage talking. He quelled it, and knocked politely on the door, which opened a crack.

"Yes?"

"Can you please tell me how to get somewhere, Sheila?" John asked politely.

"Go along this corridor, and take the first right. Take another right, and then the third left." John thanked her, and the door closed again. He set off. He navigated the first set of instructions without difficulty. The next right that she told him to take was a staircase leading down, so that was a good sign. He walked for about five minutes before coming to the third left, which led him to...a supply cupboard, containing a vacuum cleaner, some mops and a few brushes of varying size. She had sent him to nowhere. The rage was building up again, he should go back there and – no, he shouldn't. He could vaguely remember this corridor from the tour of the manor, he thought. But somehow, even though he didn't seem to recall going up any stairs, he found himself standing once more at her doorway. He knocked.

"What?" She snapped, opening the door.

"You sent me to a supply closet, Sheila."

"Good." The door started to shut again, but John quickly stuck his foot in the gap, kicking it back open. She lifted her hand to curse him, but he grabbed both it and its partner. He held them up between them, level with his chest. He used her hands to pull her closer, so she was right up against him, only their arms preventing their chests from touching. She looked up at him, eyes full of anger, rage, and...fear? He had always prided himself on his ability to look into someone's soul through their eyes, but he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"What're you afraid of, Sheila?" He asked her softly. She stared up at him, eyes wide in shock. How did he know?

"My...my father. He might try to destroy my memories again. It took Xavier six months to recover them – and through that, my head was so sore..." She trailed off, looking up into his eyes. She felt her breath catch in her throat, and firmly told herself that it was because of the painful memories he was forcing her to bring up. But it wasn't working. Behind his pretence of insanity, St. John was actually quite attractive. He smelt nice too. Of wood smoke, pencil graphite and paper. Without deciding to consciously, she leant forward to breathe in his scent. He leant forward too, until their foreheads were touching.

"If Oy let go of your hands, will you zap me?" He asked. She shook her head, forehead sliding across his. He released them, and moved his hands down to her waist. Hers somehow ended up on the back of his head, tangled in his ginger hair. He slowly brought his lips down to hers, and the hallway light exploded. He jerked back, startled.

"What did you do that for?"

"I didn't mean to." She bit her bottom lip nervously. "Do you think we could try that again?" He grinned, and brought his lips down to meet hers.

"Hey-Wanda-do-you-know-where-AARGH!" Pietro ran up, and flung his arm over his eyes dramatically when he saw what his twin sister was doing. "Wanda-how-could-you-Father-will-be-mmph." She waved her hand at him, and a blue seal appeared over the speedster's mouth.

* * *

**(1) Yes, I know.**

**(2) 'So Long and Thanks for all the Fish' sung by the dolphins of the Earth in _The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy_**

**(3) Is that even possible?**

'**So long and thanks for all the fish' from Xezbeth Vual**

**Tempo from Fostersb**


	11. Chapter 9 and a half

Rogue shut the door of her room and sighed. It had been a long day, and she was tired. Logan was sulking, as the professor had agreed to let Remy take a class separate from the danger room sessions. As a result, he had worked them extra hard in training. Then she had had her session with the professor, controlling the psyches and their powers.

She walked over to the dressing table, and picked up a small treasure-chest style box. Rogue opened it, expecting to see its contents displayed in front of her but instead, the box was empty. _It was gone_.

* * *

**Yes, I know, this doesn't count as a chapter, but it's necessary for the next **_**proper**_** chapter, which will hopefully be up very soon. Sorry for getting your hopes up!**


	12. Love does not Delight in Evil

**Love does not Delight in Evil**

* * *

The day was glorious. There wasn't one cloud in the bright blue sky, and the sun beat down. The temperature was about eighty degrees Fahrenheit (1). Evan had come to visit.

The X-men and X-kids were all in and around the pool, even Professor Xavier had come out in shorts and a t-shirt. Rogue, however, was firmly in place under a tree, reading. Kitty and - to her surprise -Wanda had both tried to sit with her, but she had insisted that they go and have fun. At first, Kitty kept looking over with puppy dog eyes from the pool, but then Bobby tackled her into the water, and after that it was war. Kitty quickly recruited Piotr, Amara, Tabitha, Jubilee and Rahne, while Bobby enlisted the help of Jamie, Roberto, Ray, Sam and Kurt.

Rogue turned a page in her book, and said,

"Ah know ya up there, Swamp Rat." The leaves above her rustled slightly as Remy jumped down, absorbing the shock of impact in the balls of his feet, and sitting down next to her.

"Min' tellin' Remy how?" He asked, craning his neck around to read the title of her book. She sighed.

"A combination of ya empathy an' Logan's sense of smell. The powers that don' need meh ta concentrate on them jus' seem ta stay 'switched ahn'." She turned to look at him, and gasped. Remy was wearing his traditional dark trousers and fingerless gloves, but the trench coat was missing...as was his top. Gambit did not have bulging muscles, but was still incredibly muscular. What really caught your attention, however, were the scars. There were several criss-crossing his upper arms, and three on his chest. One following the curve of Remy's left collar-bone, one travelling from behind his neck to the opposite lower rib, and a final one diagonally across his stomach.

"What _happened_ ta ya?" She asked, tracing the one on his collar bone. Gambit snorted.

"Remy got engaged."

"Ya did what?" For some reason, Rogue was angry at the idea of Remy getting engaged. Why on earth was she behaving like this? Her reaction didn't go unnoticed to Remy, either.

_Hehn. She sounds jealous. Dat good or bad?_

"Y' remember Remy's _pere_?" She nodded. "An' y' remember Julian?"

"Ah remember fahne, LeBeau. Get on with it!"

"Well, Remy's _pere_ an' Julian's _pere_ d'cided dat Remy an' Julian's _soeur_, Belladonna, should get married, t' ensure balance b'tween de guilds. It didn't make Julian ver' happy t' see his _soeur_ married off t' 'a low-life t'eif'. So on our weddin' day, jus' b'fore Remy said 'I do', Julian came an' cut him up. After dat, he needed t' disappear fo' a while, so his _pere_ hooked him up wit' ol' bucket head. Den Remy got a call from Henri sayin' dat _mon pere_ had been kidnapped...an' de rest y' already know."

"Yeah, 'cause ya kidnapped meh!" Rogue snapped.

"Are y'still angry 'bout dat, _chere_?"

"'Course Ah am!" Remy gave her his signature grin.

"Den why are y' still tracin' dat scar wit' y' hand?" He asked, smirking. She snatched her hand back. "G' on, _chere_, admit it. Y' missed Remy."

"Ah did not!" She replied indignantly. Remy smirked again.

"Den why was dis in a box on y' dressin' table?" He asked, holding up a card- the Queen of Hearts.

"None of ya business!" She responded, trying to snatch the card back. He held it out of her reach.

"So it don' matter t' y'?" He asked.

"No, it don't."

"Then y' won' mind if Remy does dis." And he charged it, making his orange fire dance on it.

"No!" Rogue gasped before she could stop herself.

"So y' _do_ care 'bout it- and Remy too, _hehn_?" Rather than answering, Rogue stalked off, snatching the card from his hand as she went. Remy got up and followed her. The Mississippian took a swing at him, but Gambit ducked, and went into a sweeping kick, aiming at the back of her calves. Rogue jumped over his leg, however. She then grabbed his arms, and pulled them up behind his back. What she hadn't considered, though, was the proximity this created between her and the Cajun's bare skin. She immediately let go, and backed up. He turned around, surprised.

"_Chere_, y' ok? Remy din't t'ink he was gettin' off dat easy."

"Ah don't...don't lahke bein' that close ta other people. Ah don't want ta hurt people."

"Dat why y' all covered up, an' not in a bathin' suit?"

"Yeah." He looked at her speculatively.

"What if Remy could teach y' t' control y' powers?" He asked.

"An' what makes ya think ya can?" Rogue snorted. "Trust meh, better men than ya have tried."

"_Oui_, bu' Remy t'inks he can help y' 'cause y' power is similar t' his." He pulled off a glove, revealing a hand covered in criss-crossing scars, on the palm and the back. "When his mutation developed, he couldn' touch not'in' wit'out it blowin' up. He nearly killed himself an' his _famille_- more times dan he can count."

"So how did ya learn ta control it?" She asked eagerly. He looked nervous.

"Bear in mind, _chere_, Remy migh' not be able t' help y'." She nodded, but there was, at last, hope in her eyes.

_Is it just me, Stripes, or is there something fishy about this?_ Logan's psyche asked her.

_What do ya mean, Logan?_

_Why is he offerin' now? Why not earlier?_

_Mebbe he was waitin' for the raght tahme ta bring it up._

_Hunh._ Logan's psyche snorted derisively before fading into the background of her mind.

"_Chere_? Y' OK?" She realised that she had been staring into space.

"Ah'm fahne. Jus' talkin' ta the voices in mah head." He chuckled lightly at this. "So, are we gonna start controllin' mah powers or not?" She asked impatiently.

"_Oui, chere_. Jus' let's get into some shade, _hehn_? De light is hurtin' Remy's eyes." They went and sat down under the tree.

"Now, I want y' t' relax. Lie out on th' ground, an' close y' eyes." She did so. "_Bien_. An' now focus on y' skin. Feel y' power runnin' t'rough it."

"Ah can't feel it." Rogue complained. Remy lightly brushed his fingers on her face. Rogue felt a surge of energy, and the memory of Remy discovering his power. After feeling what it was like for him, she could sense a vague sort of tingling running through her.

"Y' got it now?" She nodded. "_Bien._ D' y' t'ink y' can get hold o' it? No' physically." He added, as she clenched her fists. "Bu' mentally- like if y' were usin' Red's telekinesis." Her hands relaxed, and a light frown appeared on her forehead. "Now, draw it in t'wards y' inner self – away from y' skin. Rogue did as the Cajun said, and felt the tingle grow fainter. "Keep drawin' it in, until y' can' feel it no more." After what seemed like a long time, but was probably only a few minutes, Rogue opened her eyes, and sat up.

"Did it work?" She asked.

"Remy don't know, _chere_. Bu' he knows a good way t' find out." And he kissed her softly on the lips, then drew away. Rogue gasped, and tears appeared in her eyes. She pulled off her gloves, and traced Remy's features, fingers lingering on the Cajun's lips.

"Ah...ah can touch." She stuttered out. "Ah can touch!" Remy picked her up, and swung her around and around in the air, her arms locked around his neck. He put her down, and she ran her fingers wonderingly through his hair. "Ya hair – it's so soft! An' ya skin is so warm!"

"_Oui, chere_. An' so's yours. He stroked her face, gently tucking a stray white lock behind one ear. "Rogue?" He asked. "Can Remy kiss y' 'gain?" She answered by placing her lips firmly on his.

* * *

**(1) Roughly 27 degrees Celsius**

**(2) Fingers**

**Bathing suit and fishy from Siriusly-LOLing**

**Light and shade from Lucida Lownes**


	13. Love Rejoices with the Truth

**Because I can recognise a good idea when I see it, I will now be putting in the best quote for the previous chapter in each of the next chapter's A/N. (An idea inspired by Lizzieturbo's 'reviewer quote of the week')**

* * *

**Love Rejoices with the Truth**

Remy was not intentionally trying to anger Rogue's adamantium-laced surrogate father. He couldn't help it if Rogue was crazy enough to like him, or if the professor thought he could handle training sessions on his own now. He obviously enjoyed each of these things, but they weren't a personal insult to Logan, as the Canadian's short temper towards the Cajun thief seemed to suggest. Then again, Remy had to admit that it was amusing – and easy – to bring the short man to anger. Currently, he was waiting for the X-kids in the small wooded area behind the mansion. Bored, he flipped onto his hands and started doing press-ups, LeBeau style. After a while, he heard the loud chatter and crunching feet of the approaching students. That was something he would have to fix. But first- their observation skills. He flipped up into one of the trees, and waited. Shortly, the kids came into the clearing, looking around for their instructor.

"Mr. Lebeau? Are ye here?" The wolf-girl called.

"Y' tell me, _p'tite_." He called from his tree. The kids looked up, surprised. He dropped down. "Remy could hear y' _dix minutes_ ago. Y' should pay more attention t' y' surroundin's. An' dat brings us t' de topic o' dis lesson." The kids all groaned. It was bad enough having Scott and Jean give them lessons, now Remy too? "We goin' t' play I-spy, Lebeau style." They perked up a bit at this, until he started handing out pencils and paper ripped from a notepad.

"I spy twenty t'ings b'ginin' wit' de letter 'b'. Write down as many as y' can."

* * *

**30 minutes later**

"Alrigh', put y' name at de top o' y'r _papier_, an' hand it in." The mutants did as instructed, grumbling. Only Roberto seemed content.

"Mr. Lebeau? I found twenty one things." He said, expecting praise. Instead he got a clip on the ear.

"No-one likes a teacher's pet...unless dey got a stick up dere _derierre_." Rahne giggled. Everyone knew who the 'stick-up-the-arse' was. To be honest, she really didn't know what Jean saw in him.

* * *

Remy lay stretched out on the rec room sofa, head on Rogue's lap; enjoying the feel of her bare hands running through his unruly hair. He closed his eyes in contentment, but received a poke in the shoulder when he did.

"_Chere_, what did y' do dat fo'?" He looked up to see her grinning.

"Ah lahke ya eyes. Don't close them."

"It's OK, _chere_. Y' don' need t' pr'tend dat y' like dem. Remy knows dey're no' nice." To his surprise, Rogue scowled.

"Ya don't get it, do ya, Swamp rat? Ah _lahke_ them." Remy shrugged.

"No-one likes Remy's eyes, _chere_. His _pere_ knew he was a mutant 'cause o' dem- an' took him in. Dat's de only time dey came in useful."

"Things don't have ta be useful ta be nahce." Rogue told him angrily. Why couldn't he see how beautiful his eyes were? As she thought this, Remy smiled sheepishly.

"Remy's sorry f' not b'lievin' y', _chere_."

"What changed ya mahnd?" The thief tapped his forehead.

"Remy's an empath- he c'n feel what y' feelin'. Y' were frustrated, an' honest." He lay back down, eyes wide open and staring into Rogue's. For some reason, Remy felt more content than he had before. He supposed that the conversation had done him some good. Their peace was rudely interrupted when Kitty, Kurt, Tabby, Bobby, Sam, Jubilee and Rahne came in and turned on the TV, switching the channel to the lottery. They settled down on the available space, Bobby knocking Remy's legs off the sofa.

"Hey!" The Cajun exclaimed. "Remy was sittin' dere!"

"Yeah, well." The teen offered in response. Remy growled and sat up, arm draped around Rogue, who leant on him, and took his spare hand in her lap. He rested his head on hers, breathing in the sweet smell of her hair, when he felt her start to pull off his glove. He instantly clenched his fist, making this task impossible.

"What y' doin', _chere_?"

"Ah'm takin' off ya gloves, Cajun. Can't ya tell?" She asked him teasingly.

"Remy likes his gloves where dey are, t'ank-y'."

"But Ah-"

"_Non, chere_." Remy said forcefully, getting up and walking out. He headed up to his room and went out on the balcony. A pack of cards appeared in his hands, and he started shuffling them, when his mobile went off.

_All I want that's all I need I'm a thief I stole the beat_ (1)

"_Oui_? What d' y' wan' ?"

"Is dat any way t' talk t' y'r older _frère_?" The man on the other end of the phone replied (2)

"Henri!"

"_Oui, naturalement_. Or d' y' have some ot'er brodder I don' know 'bout?"

"What d' y' want, Henri?" Remy asked, smiling. His adopted brother always managed to cheer him up. But Henri's voice was unusually sober when he replied,

"It's Belladonna, Rems. Word got out dat she's goin' t' Bayville." Remy momentarily turned pale, and he fingered the scar on his collar bone.

"How she know where Remy is?...Come t' t'ink o' it, how d' y' know where Remy is? An' how did y' get dis numb'r?" Henri snorted.

"She an assassin, Rems. She got contacts, an' so does y' _frère_. As t' how I got dis numb'r...I snuck into y'r room, stole y' phone an' mem'rised de numb'r. Piece o' cake. Oh- got t' go. Bye!" Remy heard footsteps behind him.

"Remy? Ya okay?" Rogue asked him, walking over and wrapping her arms around his waist.

"_Non, chere._ Remy's not ok. Y' r'memb'r he tole y' 'bout his near-marriage?

"Yeah. Whay, is Julian comin' here?"

"_Non_. His _soeur_." Rogue snorted.

"Ah don't see whay ya so worried, Swamp rat. Ya're in a mansion full of mutants. No way she's goin' ta get ya."

"But _chere_, she'll try t' get you. She knows Remy has...feelin's 'bout y', an' she'll use y' t' get t' m'."

"Why Swamp rat, Ah didn't know ya cared." Remy turned around to face Rogue, and lifted her chin gently, to look into her eyes.

"Remy' sorry 'bout earlier, _chere_, bu' he don' like displayin' de scars on his hands. An' yes, he has feelin's for y'. Y'r de reason he-"

But he was broken off by a scream coming from the basketball court.

"De hell?" Remy exclaimed. He leapt over the balcony and quickly scaled down the building (3). Sprinting over, he saw Amara sitting in a basketball hoop. She was the one who had been screaming.

"Who did dat?" Remy demanded of the young teenagers standing around, hands over their ears. Roberto and Ray both pointed at Jamie.

"What? Don' be _stupide_. He couldn' reach." Remy jumped up to grab hold of the hoop, pulled Amara out, dropped down and deposited her on the floor. He then walked off, muttering about timing.

Jamie smiled innocently as Amara approached him angrily.

"How dare you? I am a princess!"

"You heard what Mr. Gambit said," Jamie defended himself; "I couldn't reach!"

The tarmac surface of the basketball court was fixed the following day, replacing a large melted area.

* * *

**(1) Lyrics to the song 'Thief' by Infinite Mass...I just typed in 'thief related songs' to Google and this was the first one.**

**(2) Well not literally 'the other end of the phone', maybe it would be better to say 'the man who phoned him' or 'Remy's brother', except that it's actually Remy's adopted brother, and he already said that it was his brother and...and I'm rambling now, aren't I?**

**(3) Part of Remy's powers is added agility, remember. Also, it's probably the sort of thing he was used to doing as a thief.**

'**lottery' and 'basketball hoop' from Siriusly-LOLing**


	14. Love Always Trusts

**Argh! This chapter did **_**not**_** want to be written. The problem is that I have so much I want to put in, and only a few chapters left. Yes, that's right. Unless the place I've been getting the chapter names from *cough Bible cough* suddenly grows, there are only five more chapters I can write, not including an epilogue (if there is one). This makes me sad, but it can't be helped.**

**This chapter assumes you've seen the Evo episode 'Cajun Spice'. If you haven't, it's on the marvel website and (possibly) youtube or Google videos.**

**Love Always Trusts**

Neither of them were what normal people would call 'safe', and maybe that was one of the reasons he was drawn to her. Of course, it went much deeper than that. But ever since that meeting, where Magneto had warned them not to touch her bare skin, that she was dangerous, he'd been interested. At first, it was a challenge. How close could he get while they were fighting, without being knocked unconscious? He found out the answer pretty soon, when she came around that corner, and almost bumped into him. It was then that he realised that she was beautiful. Don't get me wrong, he had noticed she was attractive, but beautiful...that was something different. In the words of a book Mercy had once forced him to read, "It's not the face, but the expressions on it. It's not the voice, but what you say. It's not how you look in that body, but the things you do with it. _You_ are beautiful." (1) But even though she was beautiful – inside and out – he knew there'd be hell to pay when she woke up.

They were in a similar position to one they'd been in only a year ago. He was playing cards on top of a crate, waiting for her to wake from a gas-induced sleep, courtesy of his bo staff. Once again, it was because of his past, but this time he was taking her away, rather than towards. As he left on his bike with her curled up asleep in the sidecar, he'd mentally told the professor where he was going, and why. He may have been safer in the mansion, but he wasn't going to risk it, or rather, risk her. He was taking her somewhere safe, the only place he could think of that they'd be accepted, with no risk of innocents getting hurt by his insane near-wife.

They were heading to a tall skyscraper in New York, on 42nd Street and Madison Avenue, better known as...the Baxter Building. The flame-boy, Johnny, owed him a favour or two. They were currently on a train, also much the same as before. Rogue stirred, and Remy looked up from his game of solitaire.

"Wha...what have ya done now, Swamp rat?" She cursed inwardly at how weak her voice sounded. She had only regained consciousness a moment ago, but she was already pissed at him.

"_Bonjour, chere. Ca va_?"

"Lemme see." She said sarcastically. "Ah've just woken up from bein' gassed by ya, ah'm absolutely parched, ya've kidnapped meh _again_, Logan's goin' ta kill ya, mah boyfriend's a bloody idiot. Ah don't know, how do ya think Ah am?"

"Y' boyfriend? Who dat?"

"Well Ah thought it was ya, but let me tell ya, Ah'm havin' second thoughts abaht it. How could ya do this _again_?" Remy came over, helped her into a sitting position, and handed her a bottle of water.

"Y' could say Remy's doing de wrong t'ings for de right reason. Bella would kill y', so Remy's makin' sure dat don't happen. He's takin' y' some place safe, and den..."

"Let meh guess. Then ya goin' ta go fight that bitch, and end up gettin' killed, right?" His eyes sparkled behind the dark glasses.

"Hopefully not de last part. Anyway, y' were havin' second thoughts 'bout Remy bein' y' boyfriend, remember? Why would y' care whether or not he died?"

"Because Ah love ya, ya idiot!" She shouted angrily, threw away the water bottle, and pressed her lips against his in a searing kiss. He pulled her closer, so that her body was moulded to his. She reached up and pulled off his sunglasses, throwing them to the floor along with the bottle. She wrapped her arms around his neck, hands trailing down his back, tracing delicate patterns on it with her finger tips. His arms wet around the top of her hips, crossing up over her back to cling to the opposite shoulder blades. When they broke apart to breathe, he trailed kisses along her jawline and down her neck, then back up to her left ear, while she arched into him, moaning softly in the back of her throat.

"Remy loves y', _chere_. Y' de reason he came to de institute, y' Remy's _raison de vivre_ (2). He needs y', _chere_. Y' everyt'ing to him." A snort of amusement came from the open doorway of the luggage carriage, and Remy froze. Turning around slowly, he put Rogue behind him, and looked straight into the eyes of...Belladonna.

**Yeah, I seriously considered ending this chapter there, but I'm not that mean. Just to warn you though, I almost certainly will suck at the next bit. (Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!)**

"Y' know, that was nearly mushy enough t' make me sick. Y' two 'r' quite de pair." The assassin said, still leaning against the opening of the carriage. As Remy started towards her, Belladonna pulled a gun out from behind her back, and he stopped. He knew enough about Bella that she meant business, and wouldn't hesitate to pull that trigger. A whisper came from behind him.

"Remy? How do Ah turn mah powers back on?"

"_Non, chere_. Remy's not lettin' y' absorb her. It's too _dangereux_. Trust me, y' don't want someone like her in y' head." Belladonna watched on with slight bemusement.

"Absorb me? Oh, y' mus' be dat mutant _fille_. Rogue, right ?" Remy growled. In any other situation, Belladonna would have thought it sexy, but right now...it was quite scary, actually. His crimson eyes flashed.

"Y' have no right at all t' say her name, Donna. C'mon den, shoot me an' get it over wit'." And he spread his arms wide, inviting her shot.

"No, I don' t'ink I'll use de gun after all. It's too...impersonal. Dis is much better." And she drew a short sword from a scabbard on her back. Remy reached into a pocket and pulled out his staff, extending it. He reached into the opposite pocket and brought forth a charged card.

"Hide behind dose crates, _chere_." He whispered to Rogue.

"No! Ah can't let ya fight by yaself! Ah want ta help ya!" He smiled ruefully.

_Shoulda know dat was comin'._ He thought to himself.

"_chere, _Remy'll be fine. Y'll jus' distract him. Don' worry. It'll be OK." And with that, he threw the card at Bella. She jumped neatly to the side, as he'd known she would, and did a quick roll, springing back onto her feet. She began to approach him, but he kept up the hail of cards. They held her off for a little while, but she was steadily advancing through the explosions. He charged one a bit stronger than the others, having the satisfaction of seeing her jump slightly as a small piece of exploded card cut her cheek.

Contrary to popular belief the best fighters didn't keep up a repertoire whilst with an opponent, they kept deadly quiet, focusing only on the other's eyes. A weapon can lie, but never the eyes. Remy, however, had a perfect poker face, and his feelings were clouded. Belladonna, however, showed her emotions with her whole face, and Rogue didn't need Remy's empathy to know that his opponent was completely and utterly insane. She was wild, eyes wide, teeth bared in a feral grin. Finally, she reached within striking distance of her ex-fiancé, and lashed out with her sword. She may be insane, but her sword-work was brilliant. Remy had to jump backwards to avoid getting slashed in the stomach.

"I thought that y' might want some new scares t' go wit' the ones Julian gave y', Remy-kins." Bella explained, grinning wider. Remy's face remained impassive, but Rogue could sense the hatred and anger roiling off of him. He swept his bo staff at Bella's knees, by she jumped easily over it. What she wasn't expecting, however, was the backswing, which caught her in the stomach, knocking her off balance for a second. She quickly recovered, and swung at Remy's neck. He dropped into a crouching position, and Stuck his leg out, moving it in a fast semi-circle. He hit the back of her legs, and she toppled over. As she fell, she grabbed the extended leg and tugged, pulling him over next to her. As they both started to rise, Rogue called out inside her head.

_Remy? Are ya there?_

_Oui, chere. What's de matter?_

_How do Ah bring mah powers back ?_

_Remy not goin' t' tell y' dat._

_And why not? The real ya needs my help!_

_The real Remy would prefer t' be dead dan have someone like Belle inside y' head._

_How do ya know that?_

_Remy _is_ him, remember, chere?_

_Remy just tell meh!_ She shouted angrily. She could feel him and the other psyches wince slightly at the loudness of her voice.

_Rogue?_ A new voice called out to her. One she recognised instantly as Logan's.

_Yeah? What do ya want?_

_Well in here, we all know what all the others know, so I can tell you if the Cajun wont._

_Go on then!_

Back in the battle, things were getting ugly. Both competitors had several shallow cuts on their faces and arms, and Remy was limping slightly. He had a cut on his forehead which was leaking into his eyes, effectively blinding him. He had dropped the staff, and it had been quickly kicked away. He backed up, away from Bella's sword-point, to find a tearing wind at his back. Somehow, she had manoeuvred him around to the doorway. There was nowhere to go from there- either he jumped out and left Belladonna alone with Rogue, or she killed him, leaving her alone with Rogue. Suddenly, Bella stiffened and crumpled, falling to the floor, revealing Rogue standing there, with a look of horror on her face.

"Mah God..."she whispered, before sinking to her knees, arm still outstretched in front of her. Remy hurried over to kneel besides her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders, and they remained in that position until the train arrived in New York. In that time, Belladonna didn't stir a muscle.

**(1) Yeah, I don't own the book. Okay, competition time. Who knows which part of the Bible I'm getting chapter titles from, and who knows the name of this book and its author? People who get it right will be announced at the top of the next chapter.**

**(2) Reason for life**

**As the Fantastic Four only get mentioned, does it still count as a cross-over, or am I OK? After all, they do live in the same universe. And is Belladonna dead, or merely unconscious? I finally have something I can make a poll about! Come to my profile page to vote!**


	15. Love Always Hopes

**So, the poll is up! Please, go check it out!**

**The quotes from the Bible were correctly guessed by TheJerseyGirl11, Ryutana, the-writing-vampire (though a bit unspecific), Irual and rogueslove22. The quotes are from 1 Corinthians chapter 13, verses 4 to the beginning of 8.**

**Only SunshineGirl177 got the book quote - it's from the Host, by Stephenie Meyer. (An amazing book I would strongly recommend reading.)**

**None of you checked out my poll! :(**

**Favourite Review (I forgot I was supposed to be doing these) was by Irual...I like long reviews!...but keep the short ones coming too! Seriously, even if it's just 'good chap', it makes the writer feel so much better!**

**Slight Pietro bashing in this chap.**

**Love Always Hopes**

To say that Logan was angry when he found out that both Rogue and Gambit were missing - especially when he smelt the Cajun's sleep gas - would be a rather severe understatement. In the words of St. John Allerdyce,

"Run, Sheila! The Wolverine's gone loco!" Wanda, however, ran from no man (Toad doesn't count), so she stormed up to the furious, snarling Canadian, and demanded in no uncertain terms,

"What the hell is the matter?" He turned and looked at her, mad eyes slowly turning sane. Wanda and Laura (1) were the only ones that lived in the mansion that could fully understand the Canadian's rages. Laura because she was his clone, and Wanda because she went through something very similar before she gained full control over her powers. As it was, she would still not talk to Magneto, and she even had the professor formally adopt her.

"That damn Cajun. He's kidnapped Rogue again!" While Wanda didn't generally associate with the rest of the institute's residents, she considered Rogue to be something close to a friend.

"He did what? How dare he!"

"My feelin's exactly. Any idea where he took her?" The last part was addressed to St. John, who had snuck up behind Wanda.

"East of the Sun and west of the moon? To follow the yellow brick road? Uh...how about to Las Vegas or Monaco? (2)" John ducked behind Wanda when Logan approached him, claws coming out with a _snikt_ noise.

"Oy don't know! Raid his room or something!" Logan paused, considering.

"Not a bad idea." He finally admitted, sheathing his claws and walking off, Wanda following, and St. John trailing along behind. He had spent just about every waking minute with Wanda since their kiss, to the disgust and abject horror of Pietro. The speedster always seemed to come across the couple when they were kissing, or engaging in acts slightly less PG. He always responded the same way – flinging his arm across his eyes while shouting "UUuurgh!", and zooming off. When asked where he went afterwards, he always claimed it was to 'wash his eyes out with soap'.

While Logan was searching the Cajun's room, Remy and Rogue's train had finally pulled to a stop in New York. The two southerners stepped off the train, leaving Belladonna behind. She was breathing shallowly, but showed no signs of waking. They briefly considered taking her with her to hand over to the authorities, but neither of them wanted any policemen dead- though Remy did consider it for a while. His previous life, first as a street urchin and then as a professional thief, gave him no love for the uniformed services. They met Remy's friend who was waiting for them on the platform. To Rogue's surprise, she recognised him.

"Yah that flame guy from the Fantastic Foah!" She exclaimed, and he grinned.

"I prefer 'The Human Torch', or Johnny." He turned to Remy. "I've persuaded the others to go out for the day, and both Sue and Reed are staying somewhere for the night. I'm sure you'll be able to hide from Ben. I do it all the time!" He led them out of the train station to a small red convertible.

"Uh, Johnny? Dat car only has _deux_ seats. Dere ain't enough."

"Well I was hardly going to take one of the others' cars, and this is the only one I have. Just get in, sit the girl on your lap, and be glad I didn't take the bike." And with that he jumped into the driver's seat. Remy turned to look at Rogue.

"Do y' mind, _chere_?" She snorted.

"In the past hour or so, Ah've been kidnapped, confessed mah love to a Cajun thief, had him tell meh he loved meh back, seen him fighting an assassin who happens to be his ex-wife and absorbed that assassin into mah head. Ah think Ah can handle sittin' on ya in a car, Cajun." Remy grinned and got in, and Rogue climbed onto his lap.

"Aren't either of ya goin' ta put on tha seatbelt?" She inquired of the two boys she was sharing a car with. Johnny grinned.

"I can turn to fire and fly out if we crash, Remy here can heal quickly, and I'm pretty sure you have some nifty mutant power too?"

"Ah can turn inta metal, heal even fastah than Remy, and go invulnerable." She admitted.

"Y' might want t' turn on de invulnerability, _chere_. Johnny here ain't what y'd call a 'responsible driver'." The Human Torch grinned at his Cajun friend.

"And like you're any more responsible! I remember a certain time on that bike of yours..." Remy grinned back.

"Oh yeah? Least I never tried to fly while on m' bike."

"Well I never exploded it from underneath me, so I could be shot towards something from the aftershock!" Rogue huffed and crossed her arms.

"Are we gonna go or not? Ah'm tired, and want ta go ta sleep!"

Johnny shrugged, and put the car into drive. They shot off, narrowly avoiding the other cars on the road.

A certain Canadian was standing, puzzled, outside Remy's door. The knob refused to turn, but none of the rooms were issued with locks. Unless he had brought one with him, Logan couldn't see how Remy had managed it. And what sane person carried locks around with them?...Then again, maybe that explained a lot.

"Oh, get out of the way!" Wanda huffed, and hexed the door open. As it slowly fell into dust, the trio peered into the mysterious Cajun thief's room. For the short time Remy had been living in it, the room was a complete and utter tip. There were things strewn everywhere, and in very few places was the floor clear of debris, whether it be clothes, sheets of paper, or, right in front of where the door used to be, a small metal spoon. Either the Cajun was a complete and utter slob, or he knew where everything in the room was. A mobile phone lay on the bed. As Logan reached over to pick it up, the ringtone went off.

_All I want that's all I need I'm a thief I stole the beat_

Logan picked it up, and an angry voice started shouting at him in French.

"Remy, où sont vous ? Vous êtes un idiot complet! Que pensiez-vous ? Rien évidemment! De toutes les choses irresponsables à faire-" (3)

"I don't speak French." Logan interrupted. There was a pause, and the voice spoke again, in a thick Cajun accent.

"Who are y'? How did y' get hold o' dis phone?"

"It was lying on Gambit's bed. Who are you?" Logan growled back.

"Remy's _tante_. Could y' pass him over?"

"He's not here-he's kidnapped one of our students. Any ideas why?"

"_Sacre bleu_, no' again...listen, he ain't kidnapped her – he's tryin' t' protect her. Y' see, he's got a crazed assassin after him, an' I'm assumin' he don't want her comin' t' de school o' yours. An' he won' leave her behin' 'case Bella comes dere anyway...he's on a train t' N'York, bu' y' won' get dere in time. Go t' de Baxter Buildin' t'morrow mornin', an' dey'll be dere. An' y' better no' hurt ma Remy, y' hear, Logan Howlett?" Logan blinked, surprised.

"How did you know my name?" He demanded.

"I c'n see t'ings sometimes, and don' y' dare go b'fore de mornin'. Somet'in' _tres importante_ has t' happen b'fore you X-men go bargin' in. Y' hear me?" To Logan's surprise, he found himself nodding meekly and saying,

"Yeah, I hear ya. But Stripes'd better be okay..."

"She'll be fine. G'bye." And the phone went dead.

**(1) X-23**

**(2) Who can guess where all of these came from? Hint: the last two are from a song...**

**(3)** **Remy ****where are you? You are a complete idiot! What were you thinking? Nothing of course! Of all the irresponsible things to do-**

**A lot of dialogue in this chapter, sorry! So, is it a cross-over, or is there just a guest appearance? Review and tell me!**

**Xezbeth Vual, you have your spoon. Treasure it – it's a special spoon.**


	16. Love Always Perseveres

**The quotes last chap were from a Native American legend 'East of the Sun and West of the Moon', the Wizard of Oz, and 'Money, money, money' by ABBA. Kudos to Jewel and Koal and Rogueslove22!**

**Favourite review – a toss-up between TheJerseyGirl11, Remy A.L and the-writing-vampire. Thanks you guys!**

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Love Always Perseveres

"Remy?" Rogue asked in a hushed voice.

"_Oui, chere_?" He replied from where he stood – close behind her with his arms around her waist. His voice was muffled slightly as his face was pressed into her hair.

"Why tha _hell_ are we doin' this?"

"Don' y' like spendin' time pressed up 'gainst dis Cajun?" Remy asked, and even though she couldn't see them, she knew his odd eyes were sparkling. "'Cause he sure enjoys bein' pressed up 'gainst you." He squeezed his arms around her tighter.

"Bein' close ta yah is fahne now that ya've shown meh how ta control mah powers, but why are we hidin' from flame-boy's team-mate in a closet?

"Well, Johnny ain't too proud o' de...circumstances he met dis Cajun in. Y'see, he was in N'Awlins b'fore he got his powers, an' he was roarin' drunk. He got in a fight wit' one o' de Rippers (1). Remy came over t' help, an' de two of us eventually beat de assassin. At de end, though, Johnny was badly hurt, so Remy knocked him out an' took him to de Thieves' Guild's house."

"Yah knocked him aht! Why?"

"Remy couldn' jus' take him t' de house, it's hidden in de bayou for a reason, _chere_."

"Ah suppose. But couldn't yah have just lied abaht where yah met?" She could hear the smile in his voice as he answered.

"Where would be de fun in dat, _chere_?" She was about to ask him something else, but found his hand over her mouth. Indignantly, Rogue tried to pull free, but the she heard what he had – a set of heavy footsteps coming closer. They both froze, and waited until the steps faded again.

* * *

"_Chere_?"

"What, Swamp rat?"

"Remy was meanin' t' do dis at a more...convenient point – where we ain't hidin' in a closet, but Rogue, _chere_, Anne-Marie." He shuffled around so he was facing Rogue, and reached into a pocket, pulling out a small box. "On dat train, Remy realised somet'in'. He loves y' more dan life, _chere_. Y' his _raison de etre_ (2). Would y' consider acceptin' dis?" And he opened the box to reveal a long necklace, ending in a curious pendant. It was a small white rectangle, hanging by one corner, with two red stones set next to each other in the centre. Picking it up and turning it around in her hands, Rogue saw that the back was covered in thin black lines, and one bright red one.

"It's beautiful Remy, but what is it?" She asked. The thief lifted it up and placed the chain over her head. The pendant fell to lie in the middle of her chest.

"De side wit' de red stones is Remy's sign in de T'ieves' Guild – a white card wit' his eyes on. De ot'er side shows de only safe way t' de guild house t'rough de bayou. If y' ever need anyt'ing, go dere an' show dem dis, an' y'll be looked after. Take good care of it, _oui_?"

"Of course Ah will! But there's somethang yah not tellin' me abaht it, isn't there?" Remy looked away briefly, and then back at Rogue. His eyes burnt into her, as he slowly and deliberately took her hands, and whispered,

"_Oui_, _chere_. It's de way of sayin', in de Guild, 'will y' marry me?'" Rogue gave a small cry, and flung her arms around his neck, kissing him passionately on the lips. Remy returned the kiss enthusiastically, until they both had to break apart for air.

"Remy'll take dat as a yes, den?" He asked, red eyes twinkling. Rogue rolled her eyes, laughing.

"Yes, Swamp rat. It was a yes. Now, can we please try ta get some sleep?"

* * *

"Right, we've waited long enough. Let's go." Wolverine told the others. To give him credit, he had waited for three hours. As far as the Wolverine knew, one of its cubs was in danger. Logan had held off the animal for as long as he could, but it would be held no longer.

_All I want that's all I need I'm a thief I stole the beat_

Remy's phone went off. Wolverine flipped it open, checked the caller ID – _tante _Mattie – and turned it off. After a while, his pocket started vibrating.

"Yeah?"

"I hope y' not t'inkin' of leavin' now, Logan Howlett. It ain't time for y' t' go yet."

"Listen here, lady, Rogue might be in danger! I'm not waiting any longer...and how did you get this number?"

"I got my ways, _m'sieur_ Howlett. I c'n assure y', Rogue ain't in any danger."

"An' how do I know you're tellin' the truth?" There was a pause at the other end, and then _tante_ Mattie continued. Her rich Cajun voice deeper, more solid.

"Y' real name is James Howlett, bu' in de squad y' were in dere was already a James, so y' got called by y' middle name, Logan. Y' soon got a differen' nick-name – Wolverine – for y' ferocity when attackin' de enemy, an' y' wild nature. I'm sorry 'bout Silver Fox, bu' did y' know dat Daken's got a son? He called-" (3)

Wolverine couldn't take any more. He threw the phone down, where it smashed on the floor. Those names that the woman was saying, he couldn't remember them, but they triggered faces in his head. Silver Fox was a Native American, with long black hair. The image of her smiling at him while standing in a beam of sunlight was quickly replaced by another, of Sabretooth laughing maniacally, standing over her mutilated corpse. Daken was a young boy, who looked half Japanese. He was looking down at the boy, who was holding his hand.

"パパ愛してる" Somehow, he could understand it, even though he _knew_ he didn't understand Japanese. The boy had said 'Daddy I love you." Head reeling, James – another new name – collapsed on the floor.

"RRRRAAAAAAARGHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!" He roared, clutching at his head. As he did, an old Cajun woman, sitting in a kitchen with a view of the New Orleans bayou, shook her head sadly.

"I'm sorry Logan, but it was de only way." She said.

* * *

Rogue awoke in a rather cramped position, curled up on the floor of the closet, with Remy half underneath her, and at first she thought that was why she had woken. Then she felt the hand brushing lightly over her hair, and heard him singing softly in French;

"Je t'aime, je pense í toi,

Je t'aime je pense í toi, je t'aime.  
Oh dis-moi que tu  
m'aimes sans rien oublier  
Ah enlacés, effacés,  
tous ces jours brulés,  
ces jours qu'on a passés" (4)

"Remy?" She felt him jolt slightly, before relaxing again.

"Sorry if dis Swamp rat woke y', _chere_."

"That's alright, Ah don' mind. What tahme is it anyway?"

"Remy don' know. De big guy ain't got up yet, so he's guessin' early mornin'. Did y' sleep alrigh'? Bella wasn' givin' y' any grief?" His arms subconsciously tightened around her as he mentioned the assassin's name.

"Nah, she wasn't any trouble. Have yah forgotten? Yah make the psyches shut up."

"_Oui_, Remy had forgotten."

"_Chere_?" He added in a thoughtful tone of voice.

"Yeah?"

"How much time d' y' t'ink we got till y' team-mates come t' 'rescue' y'?"

"Try none." Rogue pointed to the closet door, which was glowing blue. It collapsed into dust, to reveal Wanda, St. John, a furious Logan, claws unsheathed, and a sheepish Johnny Storm. Before Wolverine could skewer her Cajun boyfriend (_fiancé now_ she thought to herself), she stepped in front of him, covering his body with hers, and stared defiantly up into her Canadian guardian's eyes. They stood that way for some time, before St. John interrupted the staring contest.

"Are you two gonna stand staring like that forever? Or will you" – here he addressed Wolverine – "just accept that my buddy had the sheila's best interests at heart?" Logan growled slightly, but sheathed his claws and strode away.

* * *

The journey back to the mansion was undertaken in silence. Wolverine was piloting the jet, Wanda and St. John sat in the seats behind him, and Rogue and Remy sat opposite them, holding hands. When they finally landed behind the waterfall, Wolverine sat back in his seat, while Wanda and the pyromaniac (5) left. Rogue left too, but before Remy could leave via the ramp, Logan pushed a button on the panel in front of him, raising it. Remy turned to face him.

"_Oui_, Logan? What d' y' want?"

"You know what I want." Logan growled, getting up and walking over to the Cajun, who looked down at the gruff Canadian man, who was currently wishing he wasn't quite so short compared to the six foot plus man he was attempting to intimidate.

"Remy guesses dat dis is 'bout his _chere_, _non_?"

"Damn right it's about Rogue. Whaddaya think gives you the right to waltz in here and-" He was cut off as Remy's eyes widened, and his head shot up. He moved swiftly over to the sealed ramp and placed his palm flat upon it, causing it to glow magenta, then explode. He jumped down, and sprinted over to the exit of the hangar, where Rogue stood, leaning against the wall, hands clenched tightly and pressed against her forehead. He took her into his arms, supporting her weight. She moaned, and clung to him tightly. From his position still inside the jet, Logan could see Remy wince as Rogue's fists dug into his arms, but he made no move to soften her hold, just supported her with one arm and rubbed her back with the other, while making soothing noises.

"Hey, _chere_. It's alrigh', Remy's got y'. Y're ok now. It's all ok. Shhh, it's ok. Y' safe, _chere_, y' safe." Logan sighed heavily. After seeing that, there was no way he could tear the Cajun away from his cub, preferably with several puncture wounds in his gut. The swamp rat owed the X-men a new jet though.

**

* * *

**

(1) In the Evo episode Cajun Spice, they call the Assassins' Guild the 'Rippers'

**(2) Reason to exist**

**(3) thank you, Wikipedia, for your biography on Wolverine!**

**(4) Surprisingly enough, I don't own this song.**

**(5) Good name for a band, Wanda and the pyromaniacs**

**Just one more chapter (and a possible epilogue) and that's it!**


	17. Love Never Ends

**Favourite review again a tie, between the-writing-vampire for their OMGOODNESS and Courtney Summers for their hopeful eyes.**

**Love Never Ends**

In the end, Logan had made them wait for six months, but now the day had finally come. She was sitting in front of Remy's sister-in-law, Mercy, who was doing something complex with her hair. They had decided to have the wedding in New Orleans, in the chapel joined to the LeBeau house, as certain members of Remy's family would almost certainly be arrested if they left the safety of the bayou. As she felt Mercy tugging gently at her hair, Rogue let her mind drift back to the night when Remy had announced their engagement.

They were all sitting around the dining table, after Remy had cooked them a delicious southern dish. For once it had been mild enough for everyone, and no-one really wanted to leave the table. There was a sense of easy companionship that no-one wanted to break up. Even Logan was smiling occasionally. The professor made a comment on how well the new team had bonded, and Remy obviously judged this the perfect time to make the engagement known. He tapped a glass lightly with his fork, drawing everyone's attention.

"Remy's got an announcement to make." He said, standing up. Rogue's eyes widened in slight horror.

"Are yah mad, Cajun?" She asked him, standing up too.

"_Non, chere, mais_ de ot'ers need t' know."

"No they don't!"

"Rogue, if it is something that will affect the team, it is your duty to tell us." Cyclops reprimanded her.

"It's nothang tah do with tha team, it's a private mattah that y'all don't need tah worreh abaht!" She exclaimed, accent becoming more pronounced as she became increasingly emotional.

"_Meine Schwester_ (1), if it is something to do _mitt _your … relationship _mitt_ Gambit…"

"Ah'm naht pregnant, Kurt, if that's what yah mean." He breathed a sigh of relief.

"Now, if y'all jes' _sit dahn_…" She said angrily to Remy.

"Sheesh, Rogue, y'all sound lahke a married woman!"Sam laughed, then froze as she glared at him.

"_Oui_, an' dat's de wonderful news _ma Cherie_ has been tryin' t' keep from y'. We're engaged."

Rogue shuddered slightly as she recalled the look on Wolverine's face as the word 'engaged' left her fiancé's lips.

"Don' move!" Mercy scolded her.

Kurt had glanced from Logan's suddenly flat, blank face, to Remy's, grabbed the Cajun and 'ported him away to safety. Logan stood up, chair falling backwards.

"I'm going outside."

"Yah leave him alone, yah hear?" Rogue exclaimed, moving to stand in front of him. "Ah know yah've got this whole 'protection' thang goin' on, but Ah swear, if yah even so much as touch him, Ah'll drain yah, yah hear?"

"Not much of a threat, Stripes. I've got a healin' factor, remember?"

"Yeah, but it'll still bloody hurt. An' how do yah know it'll work once yah dead?" He stared into her fiery green eyes for about half a minute, then knocked her out of the way, and left the room. She started to follow, but the professor's voice in her mind made her stop.

_Rogue_.

"What is it, professah?"

"He isn't going after Gambit. Just to the nearest bar."

"Thanks, professah. D'yah know where Kurt took Remy?" The professor smiled slightly.

"The Danger Room. He thought it would be the safest place if Logan decided to follow."

"Thanks." She turned and left the room.

"Rogue. _Rogue_. Rogue!" She was brought back to the present by Mercy.

"Yeah? Sorreh, Ah must have dropped off or somethang." Mercy sighed and shook her head.

"Honestly girl, y're not acting much like it's y'r weddin' day! C'mon, dis id it! In a few hours, y're gonna be married t' m' no-good brodder-in-law. I still can' believe he's getting' hitched."

"Yeah, Ah know. It's just…" How could she explain? If she was completely honest to herself, their marriage was only a formality. They were already joined by something far stronger than two people saying 'I do'. Then again, it was a necessary formality. It gave her adopted brother and surrogate father a reassurance, and it felt nice, to be able to say her was _hers_. Not just her boyfriend, but her fiancé, her life partner, and soon…her husband.

"Well anyway, it's time t' go down now. Y' all set?" Rogue nodded, and Mercy gave her a reassuring smile. Remember, no matter what they say about Remy, he always, always, keeps his promises. And that's what this is. Now, let's go stun them!"

Even though she'd only known her for a while, Mercy was one of Rogue's bridesmaids, along with Wanda, Kitty and Tabby. As they made their way to the chapel, they were joined by Logan, who was to give her away. She slipped her arm into the crook of his, and the girls took their places behind her. At the door to the chapel, they slowed, and waited for the music - Wagner's Wedding March. As Rogue made her way down the aisle the large candles on either side of her lit up, carefully controlled by the best man - St. John.

When Rogue reached the front, she carefully lifted the veil covering her face, to let it fall back over her hair. Mercy, Logan, Wanda, John, Kitty and Tabby all moved back to sit in the front row. Rogue allowed the priest's words to wash over her, as she felt Remy's comforting hand in hers.

"Dearly beloved, we are here assembled, in the presence of God and these witnesses, to join together this man, - Rembrandt Etienne LeBeau - and this woman – Anne-Marie Darkholm - in holy marriage, which is blessed by our Lord Jesus Christ, governed by God's commandments, and is to be held in high honour among all people. Therefore it is not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly; but reverently, discreetly, and in awe of God.

Rembrandt and Anne-Marie, you have signified your desire to enter into the holy state of marriage, and no one has shown just cause why you may not. If anyone here knows of any lawful reason why this man and this woman should not be wed, I charge them now, before God, the Searcher of all hearts, to speak now, or forever hold your peace."

There was a slight pause, while most if not all the X-men were sitting in shock that Rogue had a _name_, and that she was using Mystique's last name as her own. The silence passed, and Remy breathed a quiet sigh of relief. No-one had said anything, and the family's priest was now continuing.

"If the brother of the groom, Henri LeBeau, will now step up to read to us from Paul's first letter to the Corinthians." Henri got up, holding a sheaf of paper. He walked over to stand next to the man he considered family, and read aloud;

"Love is patient; love is kind; love is no' envious nor boastful nor arrogant nor rude. It don't insist on its own way; it's no' irritable nor resentful; it does no' rejoice in wrongdoing, bu' rejoices in de trut'. It bears all t'ings, believes all t'ings, hopes all t'ings, an' endures all t'ings. Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end." The priest waited until Henri had returned to his chair, and then continued. Rogue had to be honest though – she could not remember any of his sermon. She had Remy's gift of empathy tuned up, and was high on all the affection and love washing around the building. She came back down to earth when she heard the priest say,

"Would the parents of Rembrandt and Marie please stand?" There was a pause, and then Jean-Luc, _tante_ Mattie and Logan stood.

"I ask you, as the parents of this man and this woman, do you promise to give them love, care and support in their marriage?"

"We do." Came the reply. If some of the people seated at the back heard a small whisper join in, well, it couldn't be that spider, could it? But anyway, who would want to spend time listening to a spider, when St. John and Kitty were coming forward with the rings? They were relatively simple, but not identical. They were both slim gold bands, but Remy's had two emeralds set in, and Rogue's two rubies. And then Rogue was taking his and repeating after the elderly man in front of her,

"Ah, Marie, take yah Remy, tah be mah husband. Ah promise tah stay by yah side as yah wife, in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, as well as through the good times and the bad. Ah promise tah love yah without reservation and tah cherish yah foah as long as we both shall live. This ring is a symbol of mah vow." And then it was his turn.

"_Je_, Remy, take y' Marie, t' be my wife. I promise t' stay by y'r side as y'r husband, in sickness an' in health, in joy an' in sorrow, as well as t'rough de good times an' de bad. I promise t' love y' wit'out reservation and t' cherish y' f'r as long as we both shall live. Dis ring is a symbol of m' vow."

"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." But they were already kissing, and their embrace seemed to last both nowhere near long enough, and at the same time for an eternity. Then he swept her up in his arms and carried her down the aisle at a run, whilst being pelted by tiny grains of rice.

**(1) My sister**

**And there ends this story! Please, please, pleasepleasepleaseplease, tell me what you think. It would make me soooo outrageously happy if I got a final total of ninety reviews. Oh, and I'm going to my profile now to create a poll, to choose which story I'm going to write next. Check it out if you want a sequel!**


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